Epicurus in Lycia
Epicurus in Lycia: the second-century world of Diogenes of Oenoanda Pamela Gordon
Publisher: Ann Arbor : University of Michigan Press, c1996.
ISBN: 0472105957
DDC: 187
LCC: B557
Edition: (cloth)
Summary:
Epicurus in Lycia is the first full-length study of this eccentric
second-century C.E. philosopher from Oenoanda, a small city in the
mountains of Lycia (now Turkey). Toward the end of his life, Diogenes
presented his town with a large limestone inscription that proclaimed
the wisdom of the Greek philosopher Epicurus, who had lived five
centuries earlier. This unique text, which was discovered in the late
nineteenth century, has attracted many modern readers. Previous work
on Diogenes, however, has concentrated on the reconstruction of
Diogenes' fragmentary Greek text and on the information he offers on
lost teachings of Epicurus. Gordon's study offers a new approach to
Diogenes and to the history of ancient Epicureanism in general.
Rather than considering Diogenes simply as an orthodox Epicurean,
Gordon draws attention to his engagement with the bustling world of
second-century Roman Asia Minor and demonstrates that his historical
setting shaped the way he understood and promoted Epicurean
philosophy. Gordon shows that Diogenes participated in the
fashionable revival of traditional Greek erudition, but that he
parted company with his contemporaries regarding popular religion and
the general notoriety of Epicureanism.
Notes:
Includes bibliographical references (p. 131-133) and index.
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