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ilolvu t1_j9xtg0r wrote

Reply to comment by SpiransPaululum in Often mischaracterized as a rather debaucherous, hedonistic philosophy, Epicureanism actually focuses on the removal of pain and anxiety from our lives, and champions a calm ‘philosophy as therapy’ approach in pursuit of life’s highest pleasure: mental tranquility. by philosophybreak

>The text is from Peter Green's Alexander to Actium (California 1993), from Chapter 35, "The Garden of Epicurus" (618-630).

Thank you. I'll try to hunt that down.

>My original post simply expressed the direction I have come to lean concerning the preponderance of testimonia and scholarly debate.

The problem is that you're trying to evaluate Epicurus' personal behavior from those sources. Most of them are either vague or unreliable (like Plutarch) because they come from writers who were philosophically opposed to Epicurus, or wrote centuries later.

>You are of course free to weigh the evidence yourself, toss out whatever you wish, and thus lean in whatever direction you wish.

My direction is that we don't know, and probably can't know, because there are no sources from people who knew Epicurus personally.

>I hope you'll understand if I tend to weigh the opinion of Peter Green and my own over yours. :D

Of course. This is Reddit after all...

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SpiransPaululum t1_j9zmb98 wrote

I guess I was confused by your initial post in which you claimed, as a positive statement, that Epicurus himself was "a bit of a prude." I believe my initial statement was: "I don't know." I followed that with an opinion.

For what it's worth, I do have a BA & MA in Classics, and a doctoral degree in Ancient Mediterranean history (not that any of that matters on the interwebs or carries any credibility). I feel equipped to weigh the testimonia appropriately, and indicate which direction that evidence has me leaning.

There are many scholars who take the "we can't know for sure" approach, and then compose entire book-length treatments on the subject that reflect their opinion based on the evidence available. That's the position we're in with nearly every facet of antiquity. Many of my colleagues in history who study more contemporary periods often claim we lack the evidence to do ancient history at all. Obviously, I do not share that perspective.

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