“Deep furrows mark his wide forehead and raised eyebrows convey a mood of deep thoughtfulness. The drooping lips, covered by a thick mustache and a long beard, present to us the image of one of those men who, as Schopenhauer once remarked, carry engraved on their foreheads the word DISAPPOINTED, either because their lives did not tum out to be what they expected or because their struggle against the world proved to be futile. We suspect that the latter case applies to Antisthenes. The man who in a Herculean attempt to set the world aright transformed himself into a dog for the purpose of denouncing its idiocy and irrationality probably faced death under a burden of existential disappointment.” ExistentialismCynicismAntisthenes Book:Antisthenes of Athens: Setting the World Aright Source: Antisthenes of Athens: Setting the World Aright
“Most of the anecdotes reported about him by Diogenes Laertius appear to belong to this stage, no less than many of the statements attributed to him in other sources. He is caustic in his remarks and brutal in his comments about people, not hesitant to display an abysmal contempt for society at large and for the countless people who crossed his path. He shows no respect for the laws and argues that the wise man should not guide himself by them, but only by his own rational principles (D. L. VI, 11 ). Neither is there in him any respect for the things that most people value, such as reputation, wealth, social position, luxury, an easy life, physical beauty, and other similar things. He pierces mercilessly through the mantle of social illusions that, like enticing and elusive ghosts, make people move aimlessly in all directions. He seeks to purge language, his own and that of others, of euphemisms that cover up the truth. His freedom of speech knows no bounds -he speaks the truth as he sees it, regardless of the consequences of his words. His behavior is reserved and, at times, even bellicose, and the roughness with which he deals with those who approach him for instruction does not create around him a welcoming aura. Repeatedly, echoing a statement made by Socrates in Plato 's Apology, he insists that h e i s not like the rest and says that the main advantage he has derived from philosophy is his ability to be in touch with himself (D.L. VI, 6).” CynicismAntisthenesBrutalism Book:Antisthenes of Athens: Setting the World Aright Source: Antisthenes of Athens: Setting the World Aright