Hi there, you're listening to the Hellenistic Age podcast.

Episode 47, Hellenistic philosophy, cynics, chironaics, and Peripatetics.

Much of the scholarly attention regarding Hellenistic philosophy is dominated by a focus on three main schools, Epicureanism, Stoicism, and Skepticism.

The overall structure of my narrative thus far has followed this traditional framework, and

while each are indeed very important and demand a dedicated discussion, they were not the

only philosophical movements of the period.

In an effort to give you a more rounded perspective, I wanted to conclude our look at the

philosophies that emerged during the Hellenistic period and spends an episode talking about the remaining major schools. These include the ascetic and oftentimes

crass cynics, the hedonistic predecessors of the Epicureans known as the Chironaics, and lastly

the peripatetics, the heirs of Aristotle. I won't be going as in depth as I've already

previously done with the

big three, but at the very least, I wanted to share their core ideas and historical backgrounds.

So, I hope you enjoy this brief round tour of the remaining philosophies of the Hellenistic world.

Like with the term Stoic, cynic is a word that carries a specific connotation in a modern context,

referring to the general perception that people are fundamentally selfish and will act in their own

interest. Also like the term stoic, the modern connotation is incomplete and somewhat misleading

with regards to its classical inspiration.

In contrast, ancient cynicism is not pessimistic,

and arguably could be considered a idealistic philosophy,

because fundamentally it argues that human beings are good at their very core,

and are only corrupted or burdened by the trappings of society,

the pejorative civilization of Twain's Huck Finn, or perhaps an early form of anarcho-primitivism.

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