the legend about Diogenes releasing a plucked chicken in Plato's academy to mock his definition of man as a featherless biped is basically just that

i wonder if "behold, a man" is the oldest joke that i still use regularly

diogenes has two basic points as a philosopher, as a person in general, really -hates the rich more than you can possibly imagine -most passionate hobby/general idea of 'fun' is trying to make people so mad they have a stroke

I like the idea that he was the local bum who was just so good at trolling the Academy swells and such a relentless prick (complimentary) that he managed to be remembered through thousands of years of mostly-lost history and we now seem him as their peer or better.

That's a funny idea, but y'know something even funnier? It's pretty much accurate. He wasn't LOCAL to Athens or Corinth, but the sources basically agree that he was a (kind of) bum who became a philosopher. 1/3

Classical accounts of the lives of philosophers are embellished, symbolic, and otherwise unreliable. But to the extent that we can rely on them, Diogenes was well-educated and came from good family in Sinope. He committed the very grave offense of debasing the coinage. 2/3

He lost his social status, citizenship, and all his goods and property, forcing him to live among strangers in extreme poverty among the dregs of Athenian society. He basically responded by saying "fuck it", embracing asceticism, and rejecting and roundly mocking traditional values and mores. 3/3

The original stand-up comedian/performance artist with many bits still undefeated after 1000s of years, such as when people yelled at him for jacking off in public and he replied by saying "if only I could relieve my hunger by rubbing my belly"

The two types of comedians, George Carlin and Carrot Top. Despite his well thought out cultural critique, Diogenes? A Carrot Top.

Walking around with a lantern searching for an honest man does make him a prop comic, after all.

god, reminding me i once constructed a sort of pyramid spectrum of 'how to respond to those of wealth living with guilt over it', and the three points being: Karl Marx, Jesus of Nazareth, and Diogenes of Sinope

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Same

Alexander the Fucking Great: "I'm your biggest fan, Mr. Diogenes, SIR! I'll grant you anything in my power to grant! You just name it!" Diogenes: "Stand the fuck aside, you're blocking my light!"