There are many minor variants of what Diogenes is supposed to have replied to Alexander. And when that monarch addressed him with greetings, and asked if he wanted anything, "Yes," said Diogenes, "stand a little out of my sun." It is said that Alexander was so struck by this, and admired so much the haughtiness and grandeur of the man who had nothing but scorn for him, that he said to his followers, who were laughing and jesting about the philosopher as they went away, "But truly, if I were not Alexander, I wish I were Diogenes." Diogenes raised himself up a little when he saw so many people coming towards him, and fixed his eyes upon Alexander. But since that philosopher took not the slightest notice of Alexander, and continued to enjoy his leisure in the suburb Craneion, Alexander went in person to see him, and he found him lying in the sun. Thereupon many statesmen and philosophers came to Alexander with their congratulations, and he expected that Diogenes of Sinope also, who was tarrying in Corinth, would do likewise. As told by Diogenes Laërtius, Diogenes replied, "Stand out of my light." Plutarch provides a longer version of the story, which begins after Alexander arrives in Corinth: Alexander wanted to fulfill a wish for Diogenes and asked him what he desired. The original anecdote Alexander und Diogenes by Lovis Corinth, 1894, at the Graphische Sammlung Albertina Alexander and Diogenes, lithograph illustration by Louis Loeb in Century Magazine, 1898Īccording to legend, Alexander the Great came to visit the philosopher Diogenes of Sinope. Several of the embellished versions of the anecdote do not name either one or both of the protagonists, and some indeed substitute Socrates for Diogenes. Versions upon versions of the anecdote exist, with the origins of most appearing to be, either directly or indirectly, in the account of the meeting given by Plutarch, whose actual historicity has also been questioned. The literature and artwork influenced by this story are extensive. Although this account is dubious (since neither man's date of death can be conclusively verified), the anecdote, and the relationship between the two people, has been the subject of many literary and artistic works over the centuries, from the writings of Diogenes Laërtius to David Pinski's 1930 dramatic reconstruction of the encounter, Aleḳsander un Dyogenes including writings from the Middle Ages, several works of Henry Fielding, and possibly even Shakespeare's King Lear along the way. Plutarch and Diogenes Laërtius report that Alexander and Diogenes died on the same day, in 323 BC. The most popular relate it as evidence of Diogenes' disregard for authority, wealth, and decorum. The meeting of Diogenes of Sinope and Alexander the Great is one of the most discussed anecdotes from philosophical history. It brings into focus Diogenes’ historiographical and literary objectives and advances our understanding of Diogenes as an author and historian of philosophy.Anecdote in Greek philosophical history Alexander visits Diogenes in Corinth - Diogenes asks him to stand out of his sun (engraving) An analysis of the structure and transitions in Diogenes VII shows the importance of an otherwise unknown historian of the Stoic school, Apollonius of Tyre (1st cent BC), whose Life of Zeno was used by Diogenes for the overall structure of Book VII, but adapted to incorporate his own topical organization, with emphasis on the aspects that he considered essential for assessing a philosopher’s worth. An analysis of it in its intermediate stage of construction allows clarification of the nature and identity of many or most of his immediate sources, as well as of the assimilation process that was used to weld these excerpts into a unified whole. Book VII was such a work, but one still under construction, and not completely integrated. Diogenes’ composition of Book VII is examined in the light of what is known about the ancient method of composition of informational works, namely, collecting and arranging excerpts of earlier sources and then progressively integrating and synthesizing them into a new work.
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