The Epicurean Sage in the Ethics of Philodemus

Wim Nijs, Ph.D. (2022) at KU Leuven and Sapienza - Università di Roma, is a Postdoctoral Researcher in Greek Studies at KU Leuven. He has published several articles and papers on Philodemus and other ancient Epicureans.

Contents

Acknowledgements

Abbreviations



1 Introduction



2 The Sage

 2.1 The Sage in Antiquity

 2.2 The Sage in Epicureanism



3 A Sociable Fellow and a Good Friend

 3.1 The Avoidance of Social Isolation

 3.2 Φιλανθρωπια and Sociability

 3.3 The Importance of Having (Many) Friends

 3.4 Sage Meets Sage: How Will the Sage Befriend His Peer?

 3.5 Concluding Remarks



4 A Teacher and a Healer

 4.1 General Remarks

 4.2 Why Is the Sage a Teacher and a Healer?

 4.3 The Art of Teaching



5 Strategies of Interaction: How to Deal with the Morally Deficient

 5.1 The Sage’s Downward Gaze

 5.2 The Sage’s Defense against His Enemies



6 The Sage’s Self-Control

 6.1 Bites of Anger and Sorrow

 6.2 Will the Sage Feign Anger?

 6.3 Will the Sage Become Drunk?



7 Apology of the Sage

 7.1 Three Apologies

 7.2 Structural Comparison

 7.3 The Epistemological Dimension

 7.4 Conclusion



8 The Sage’s Livelihood

 8.1 Introduction

 8.2 The Roman Sage and His Estate

 8.3 Leisure and the Labor of Others



9 Conclusions

 9.1 A Qualifying View on Sagehood

 9.2 The Limits of Qualifying Philosophy

 9.3 Final Conclusion



Appendix: Philodemus’ Papyrological Writings: an Overview of the Cited Papyri and their Editions



Bibliography



Indices

 Index locorum

 General index