Greek philosophers
Aristippus of Cyrene
Aristippus of Cyrene was a Greek philosopher who was born in 435 BC in Cyrene, where he also died in 355 BC. He was a pupil of Socrates and founded the Cyrenaic school.
Aristippos considered the goal of life to be the attainment of pleasure. He was a prominent proponent of hedonism.
The fame of Socrates brought him to Athens around 416 BC, where he became his disciple. Aristippus later had his lectures paid for, distinguishing him from his teacher. Later he stayed at the court of the Syracusan tyrant Dionysius I and then at the court of Dionysius II. Here he also met Plato, who criticized him for his expensive bohemian life, but Aristippus did not mind.
Aristippos enjoyed life and all its halls. He likened pleasure to a calm sea and sorrows to a stormy sea. He advised everyone to enjoy life while they can, because we do not know what the future holds. He did not reject pleasure, even that which comes from "the ugliest of springs". He also preached that pleasure must not dominate us. According to him, pleasure does not control the one who renounces it, but the one who does not allow it to control him. Thus the Hedonists created a certain ethic of freedom.
He was also a proponent of sensualism. Thus, he argued that human knowledge is derived from sense perception.
Diogenes Laertios stated that Aristippus wrote a large number of writings, but doubts still arose over their authenticity in antiquity.
At the end of his life he returned to his native Cyrene, where he founded the Cyrenaic school. Among his pupils was his daughter Arété, who took over the school after his death.