Letter to herodotus wikisource, the free online library. Epicurus, son of neocles and chaerestrate, was as citizen of athens of the deme gargettus, and, as metrodorus says in his book on noble birth, of the family of the philaidae. For it is to obtain this end that we always act, namely, to avoid pain and fear. He turned to philosophy at the age of fourteen, when his litera. Letter to menoeceus summary epicurus, greek philosopher, left us only three letters. Yet epicurus didnt simply equate pleasure with good physical sensations. This letter, written in a direct style, friend to another, is a veritable manual of happiness.
For no age is too early or too late for the health of the soul. Please post comments and questions at this link let no one when young delay to study philosophy, nor when he is old grow weary of his study. After reading this post, you may be interested in this post on the letter to menoeceus which tries to sum up epicurus philosophy. The letter to menoeceus cyril bailey let no one when young delay to study philosophy, nor when he is old grow weary of his study. He authored, in fact, some three hundred books, and he never cited any other authors all the words contained in them were epicurus own. Here, ive broken the letter up into segments the headings are mine and added commentary to each section. In this post, well explore the start of his letter.
For no one can come too early or too late to secure the health of his soul. In his letter to menoeceus, he qualifies the following apparently pleasurable experiences as not true pleasure. Let no one be slow to seek wisdom when he is young nor weary in the search thereof when he is grown old. Principal doctrines and letter to menoeceus epicurus translated by robert drew hicks epicurus 341270 bc was an ancient greek philosopher as well as the founder of the school of philosophy called epicureanism. Historical context for letter to menoeceus by epicurus epicurus teaching rejects platonic forms. Historical context for letter to menoeceus by epicurus the. These are the sources and citations used to research epicurus. This translation of the letter is by peter saintandre 2011 and. This letter addresses epicurus belief that the root of all knowledge is sensation. Letter to menoeceus wikisource, the free online library. A few comments have been posted about letter to menoeceus. The original text with sidebyside greek can be viewed here.
Epicurus does not think that every pleasure is good for us. This translation is by cyril bailey from his book epicurus, the extant remains. They are related by genealogy, the first being the grandfather of the second. Gerson from the epicurus reader, edited and translated by brad inwood and l. Letter to menoikos by epicurus translated by peter saintandre 2011 english translation greek original. Dive deep into epicurus principal doctrinesletter to menoeceus with extended analysis, commentary, and discussion. The letter to menoeceus introduction the letter to menoeceus was written by epicurus to menoeceus in order to give a short summary of his ethical views.
Letter to menoeceus translated by robert drew hicks principal doctrines translated by robert drew hicks. Letter to menoeceus reference translation newepicurean. To listen to sanderson beck reading his translation of the writings of epicurus part 1, please click on the play triangle below. Summary of epicurus letter to menoeceus jotted lines. Jun 24, 2019 epicurus teaching rejects platonic forms. In his letter to menoeceus, epicurus offers a summary of his ethical system. Epicurus letter to herodotus elemental edition youtube. View epicurus letter to menoeceus, inwood translation 6. May 28, 2007 a previous post on epicurus vision of the universe that is important for this post. His letter to menoeceus survived, and im going to break that down for you. The goal of life is to have lived well, which is achieved through pleasure, this is why the letter to menoceus, diogenes laertius, torquatus in on ends cicero, and lucretius all agree that the best life is the most pleasant one, laertius even states that epicurus used.
We begin with a few key points from epicurus letter to menoeceus. Epicurus letter to menoeceus, inwood translation 6. Let no one delay the study of philosophy while young nor weary of it when old. He is said by heraclides 1 in his epitome of sotion, as well as by other authorities, to have been brought up at samos after the athenians had sent settlers there and to have come to athens at the.
Goodness is reducible to betterness the evil of death is the value of life. This particular letter is also known as letter to a friend and the letter on happiness. Based on the translation by robert drew hicks, with minor emendations by daniel. John broome 1993 in peter koslowski yuichi shionoya ed. Ethical writings of epicurus translated by sanderson beck. Letter to menoeceus by epicurus, translated by robert drew hicks. Aug 07, 2019 a new, publicdomain translation of the letter to menoikos of epicurus, including the original greek text along with notes on the translation.
The letter to menoeceus introduction the letter to menoeceus was written by epicurus to menoeceus in order to give a short summary of his ethical. For it is never too early or too late for the health of the soul. Let no one when young delay to study philosophy, nor when he is old grow weary of his study. It rejects aristotles teleological view of the kosmos. Epicurus letter to menoeceus epistula ad menoeceum in original greek epicurus to menoeceus, greetings. Later epicureans mainly followed the same ideas as epicurus, believing in the existence of the gods, but emphatically rejecting the idea of divine providence.
A new, publicdomain translation of the letter to menoikos of epicurus, including the original greek text along with notes on the translation. This bibliography was generated on cite this for me on friday, march 6, 2015. For no man can ever find the time unsuitable or too late to study the health of his soul. Our concern today is the opening of epicurus letter to herodotus which concerns the topic of the universe. This and the principal doctrines are two most important surviving texts spelling out epicurus ethical theory. Letter to menoeceus by epicurus the internet classics archive. Menoeceus, father of creon, jocasta and hipponome and both grandfather and fatherinlaw of. Let no one be slow to seek wisdom when he is young nor. A previous post on epicurus vision of the universe that is important for this post. Let no one put off the love and practice of wisdom when young, nor grow tired of it when old. Let no one be slow to seek wisdom when he is young nor weary in the search. And to say that the season for studying philosophy has not yet come. Menoeceus, son of creon and possibly eurydice, named after his grandfather. Historical context for letter to menoeceus by epicurus.
Epicurus to menoeceus, greetings let no one delay in the study of philosophy while he is young, and when he is old, let him not become weary of the study. Letter to menoikos, by epicurus monadnock valley press. Jul 19, 2019 a new, publicdomain translation of the letter to menoikos of epicurus, including the original greek text along with notes on the translation. Only a few fragments and letters of epicuruss 300 written works remain. He was the theban son of pentheus and a descendant of the spartoi through his grandfather echion. Life stands before us as a wide open landscape full of possibilities. Extracted from diogenes laertius, lives of eminent philosophers, trans.
Below is a quote from the start of epicurus letter to menoeceus. Mar 11, 2017 letter to menoeceus by epicurus, translated by robert drew hicks. Some time back i posted epicuruss letter to menoeceus. You should read that post if you would like to familiarize yourself with it in its entirety. Epicurus himself criticizes popular religion in both his letter to menoeceus and his letter to herodotus, but in a restrained and moderate tone. Epicurus, letter to menoeceus 2 of 2 bance, since this is the aim of the life of blessedness. The internet classics archive letter to menoeceus by epicurus. Please post comments and questions at this link on this blissful day, which is also the last of my life, i write this to you. For more quotes like this, follow the philosophical life on instagram. Epicurus was quite a prolific author, surpassing all in the quantity of books produced. Selected writings and testimonia 1994 hackett publishing company, inc 121. For comparison purposes, below this version is the translation by norman dewitt from the appendix to his book st. Still, i dont like yesterdays work, and i think todays entry will be much more satisfactory. Diogenes laertius, lives of eminent philosophers, book x.
Mar 21, 2018 some time back i posted epicuruss letter to menoeceus. On choices and avoidances u1 diogenes laertius, lives of philosophers, x. Epicurus the letter to menoeceus translated by brad inwood and l. The internet classics archive letter to menoeceus by. Letter to menoeceus by epicurus translated by robert drew hicks. Principal doctrines and letter to menoeceus by epicurus. Keywords no keywords specified fix it categories epicurus in ancient greek and roman philosophy categorize this paper options edit this record. And when this is once secured for us, all the tempest of the soul is dispersed, since the living creature has. Below is a quote from the start of epicurus letter to.
Abstract online english translation of this summary of epicurus ethics. I, peter saintandre, made this translation of the letter to menoikos of epicurus from greek into english in the year 2011. For no one is either too young or too old for the health of the soul. The translator has provided the following statement regarding the of his translation. Letter to menoeceus by epicurus based on the translation by robert drew hicks, with minor emendations by daniel kolak.
Does epicurus think that it is good for us to seek every pleasure. Selections from the letter to menoeceus free inquiry. Epicurus, greek philosopher, left us only three letters. Jan 07, 2015 1925 from the translation of lives of the eminent philosophers by diogenes laertius. Let no one be slow to seek wisdom when he is young nor weary in the search of it when he has grown old.
Menoeceus, father of creon, jocasta and hipponome and both grandfather and fatherinlaw of oedipus. Regarding pleasure, he differs from the cyrenaics, who do not recognize katastematic pleasures, but only pleasures in motion. Feb 14, 2016 please thumbs up if you like this video. Only a few fragments and letters of epicurus s 300 written works remain. The letter to menoeceus, translated by brad inwood and l. It is to this last letter that we are interested in now. Commentary on epicurus letter to menoeceus perspectives. Epicurus letter to herodotus is the most fundamental statement left to us from the ancient world of the basic principles of epicurean philosophy.
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