Post on 07-Jul-2018
8/18/2019 Tipos de Filósofos
1/6
The Stone
Socrates, Cynics and Flat-Nailed, FeatherlessBipedsBy
Nickolas Pappas
April 4, 2016 3:21 am April 4, 2016 3:21 am
The Stone is a form for contemporary philosophers an! other
thinkers on isses "oth timely an! timeless#
There$s a story that %ol! ha&e taken place 'assmin( it$s tre) not
lon( after the !eath of Socrates# Plato set ot to !efine *hman
"ein(+ an! annonce! the ans%er: *featherless "ipe!#+ hen
-io(enes of Sinope hear! the ne%s he came to Plato$s school, kno%n
as the Aca!emy, %ith a plcke! chicken, sayin(, *.ere$s the Platonic
hman/+ Natrally, the Aca!emy ha! to fi its !efinition, so it a!!e!
the phrase *%ith flat nails#+
ynics like -io(enes "eha&e! not as the athors of theories
"t as performers of %is!om# They %ere philosophers in
action, nota"le for eistin( rather than for their acconts of
eistence#
This story is %i!ely tol!, an! not st "ecase it has a pnch line# t
represents philosophers as al%ays ha&in( "elon(e! to t%o &ery!ifferent types an! it$s %orth remem"erin( ho% far "ack the !i&ision
(oes# 5ecently 5o"ert ro!eman an! A!am Bri((le %rote a colmn
for The Stone, *hen Philosophy 7ost its ay,+ that ar(e!
philosophy cease! to "e %hat Socrates ha! ma!e of it sometime
aron! the late 18 centry, %hen it "ecame professionali9e! %ithin
http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/category/the-stone/?module=BlogCategory&version=Blog%20Post&action=Click&contentCollection=Opinion&pgtype=Blogs®ion=Headerhttp://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/author/nickolas-pappas/http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/category/the-stone/http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2016/01/11/when-philosophy-lost-its-way/http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/category/the-stone/?module=BlogCategory&version=Blog%20Post&action=Click&contentCollection=Opinion&pgtype=Blogs®ion=Headerhttp://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/author/nickolas-pappas/http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/category/the-stone/http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2016/01/11/when-philosophy-lost-its-way/
8/18/2019 Tipos de Filósofos
2/6
8/18/2019 Tipos de Filósofos
3/6
feathers an! so !ispro&es the Aca!emy$s !efinition# ;n the other
han! the philosophers in the Aca!emy keep their !i(nity# As if they
!i!n$t kno% they %ere "ein( ma!e fn of, they looke! p from the
chicken in the room an! fi!!le! %ith their !efinition to impro&e it#
hen philosophers (ather to(ether they can "il! on one another$s
insi(hts an! impro&e on past accomplishments# Plato$s !ialo(es
offer (limpses of ho% philosophy %ol! ha&e "een practice! at his
school, as a collecti&e an! cooperati&e
8/18/2019 Tipos de Filósofos
4/6
not make p for the a"sence of that rationality an! systematic
ar(mentation that characteri9e the tre philosophers of anti
8/18/2019 Tipos de Filósofos
5/6
an! pri(ht citi9en#
Then there %ere other (ra&en ima(es of philosophers !rin( those
same years that %e can classify as le(acies of the ynics# Bear!s
man(y, postre slmpe!, !resse! in one "i( ro(h cloth an! restin(
on a %alkin( stick, the ynics %an!ere! thro(h the 5oman %orl! as
its ima(e of the freethinker, ne&er at home D not e&en in a
philosophical theory "t *cosmopolitan,+ to se a %or! the ynics
in&ente!: citi9ens of the %orl!, meanin( that they !i!n$t "elon(
any%here in particlar# ontercltralism %as their instinct e&en if
it %as a ne(ati&e implse# -io(enes %as aske! %hat %as most
"eatifl an! ans%ere! parrhesia *can!or, free!om of speech+
"t the %or! literally means *sayin( e&erythin(,+ an! the ynic ha!
to "e rea!y to say anythin( at all, impro&isin( philosophy n!er all
circmstances#
n their role as %alkin( contereamples, the ynics mattere! more
as %ho they %ere than for the content of anythin( they sai!# n this
sense ooper is ri(ht to separate them from the ancient tra!itions of
moral theory# n the hman !rama, they "eha&e! not as the athors of theories "t as performers of %is!om# e kno% them anec!otally
"ecase they li&e! anec!otally, as the s"ects of retol! tales# They
%ere philosophers in action, nota"le for eistin( rather than for their
acconts of eistence#
hen hristianity "ecame le(al in the 5oman mpire, Platonism (a&e
the early chrch$s thinkers a &oca"lary for n!erstan!in( the !i&ine,
helpe! to eplain ho% !i&inity offere! (i!ance to hman "ein(s, an!
s((este! ho% hman "ein(s mi(ht aspire to !i&inity# Bt the
contercltral appeal of Socrates also affecte! hristians, %ho
%ol! remem"er the persections a(ainst them lon( after they ha!
cease! "ein( persecte!# 5ea!in( a"ot Socrates yo col! "elie&e
that yo mi(ht "e ri(ht a"ot yor corse of action e&en %ith the
8/18/2019 Tipos de Filósofos
6/6
%orl! a(ainst yo, an! hristian hermits %ho %ante! to immerse
themsel&es in their faith sa% the ynics as their "est mo!els#
Philosophy has plle! in "oth !irections, systematic an! s"&ersi&e,
for as lon( as it has remem"ere! Socrates# t !oesn$t for(et him "y
inclinin( one %ay or the other# The Aca!emy ha! the ori(inality to
en&ision an intellectal society D %hat a ni&ersity still is, at its "est
D !istin(ishe! "y the &irtes of mo!esty an! self>control, al%ays
rea!y to sher ne% st!ents into the tra!ition# Philosophy as a
tra!ition %ol! ha&e %ithere! %ithot an aca!emy to li&e in# f it
sometimes appears to "e %itherin( %ithin the aca!emy, that is
"ecase the s"&ersi&e si!e of Socrates has its appeal: the &irtes of
the eccentric, a"o&e all eccentric cora(e, an! the %illin(ness to
make yor life an impro&isation#
The ynics nee! a near"y aca!emy, if only as a place to thro% their
plcke! chickens, "t the aca!emy nee!s near"y cynics too, if only
as %alkin( a!&ertisements for philosophy as a serios st!y,
remin!ers that this is a s"ect people fall in lo&e %ith#
Nickolas Pappas teaches philosophy at 1ity 1olle(e an! the Cra!ate
1enter of the 1ity Eni&ersity of Ne% ?ork# .e is the athor, most
recently, of * The Philosopher$s Ne% 1lothes #+
https://www.routledge.com/products/9781138929562https://www.routledge.com/products/9781138929562