Norman Wentworth DeWitt

Norman Wentworth DeWitt has written a most extraordinary book on Epicurus. As a way of review, here are a number of quotes along with my brief comments.

"Another device consistently practiced by Epicureans was to begin with the synoptic view (broad overview). He thought of his writings as maps drawn to larger and smaller scales. The process of learning was regarded as a progression from general maps with few details to regional maps, as it were, with a proportionate increase in detail". ---------- In other words, in teaching students his philosophy, Epicurus started with a general overview and then went back and filled in the details. And this is exactly what DeWitt does in his book, first giving us the general overview of Epicurean philosophy in the first chapters and then filling in the details in the later chapters.

"The man himself was revered as an ethical father, a savior, and a god. Men and women wore his image on finger-rings; they displayed painted portraits of him in their living rooms; the more affluent honored him with likenesses in marble." --------- One big reason Epicurus was held in such esteem - he freed people from their primal fears: fear of death and fear of the wrath of the gods. Is it any wonder followers who embraced his philosophy held him to be a savior and wanted to look upon his face as a constant reminder of his principles?

"His name became an abomination to orthodox Jews. The Christians, though by no means blind to the merits of his ethics, abhorred him for his denial of divine providence and immortality." ---------- DeWitt provides the historical and cultural context of Epicurus and Epicureanism in the ancient world. Epicurus developed a powerful philosophy embraced for hundreds of years, which included a vision that the gods are too blissful to concern themselves with humans and that `Death is nothing to us'. These were two good reasons those holding opposite beliefs despised Epicurus.

"In the succession of philosophers the place of Epicurus is immediately after Plato and Pyrrho the skeptic. Platonism and skepticism were among his chief abominations. The false opinion is to think of him opposed to Stoicism." ---------- Again, DeWitt provides the historical backdrop of what Epicurus was encountering: Platonists, Aristotelians and Skeptics. Epicurus did not outline his philosophy as a counter to the Stoics and Stoic philosophy since Zeno, the founder of Stoicism, came years after Epicurus. Rather, Epicurus was strongly anti-Platonism; matter of fact, Epicurus in many respects was the anti-Plato. DeWitt cites four main Platonic ideas (noted below) and elaborates on how Epicurus rejected all four:

1) "Dramatization of logic, which is called dialectic, best exemplified by the Platonic dialogues."
---------- Epicurus judged Platonic dialogues as unnecessarily complex; according to Epicurus, a student needs to study clearly stated principles, not wade through dramatic logic.

2) "The theory of ideas was rejected as an absurdity by the young Epicurus, because he was a materialist and denied all existences except atoms and space." --------- Epicurus disdained Plato’s positing a separate world of ideas or forms up in some abstract realm; his view was to equate the cosmos with nature, which is very much in keeping with our modern-day physics.

3) "The belief that the body was a tomb or prison-house, which blurred the vision of reason and prevented perfection of knowledge. All that the human being perceived was the transient appearance of things as opposed to the eternal ideas. This to Epicurus was virtually skepticism." ---------- Epicurus clearly understood the grave dangers of rejecting and hating the body and the evidence of the senses. With great foresight, Epicurus anticipated what such a rejection and hatred of the body can lead to – the masochistic scourging and whipping and starving of the body during the medieval period.

4) "Planets were declared to be gods (by Plato). This seemed both shocking and absurd to Epicurus; shocking because it meant having more gods to fear, absurd because august gods were assumed to become hurling balls of fire." ---------- Again, Epicurus saw the world much in the same way as a modern-day university physicist.

And lastly, below are some key Epicurean ideas along with my comments that have a particular relevance for our 21st century:

"The new creed (of Epicurus) became applicable to women as well as to men and to human beings of all ages, whether slave or free." ---------- Here we have a clear example of how Epicureanism differed from the provincial philosophy of Plato and Aristotle. The philosophy of Epicurus was urbane and universal, thus Greeks and non-Greeks, men and women and even slaves could become Epicureans.

"It was Epicurus who first extended brotherly love to embrace mankind and exalted it as the impelling motive for revealing to men the way to happiness." And " . . . he did not shrink from choosing the suspected name of pleasure as the designation of the goal of life." ---------- So, with Epicurus, we have a philosophy holding all men and women to be our brothers and sisters and viewing pleasure as a key to our experience of happiness. What a treasure from the ancient world.



… (más)

Norman Wentworth DeWitt has written a most extraordinary book on Epicurus. As a way of review, here are a number of quotes along with my brief comments.

"Another device consistently practiced by Epicureans was to begin with the synoptic view (broad overview). He thought of his writings as maps drawn to larger and smaller scales. The process of learning was regarded as a progression from general maps with few details to regional maps, as it were, with a proportionate increase in detail". ---------- In other words, in teaching students his philosophy, Epicurus started with a general overview and then went back and filled in the details. And this is exactly what DeWitt does in his book, first giving us the general overview of Epicurean philosophy in the first chapters and then filling in the details in the later chapters.

"The man himself was revered as an ethical father, a savior, and a god. Men and women wore his image on finger-rings; they displayed painted portraits of him in their living rooms; the more affluent honored him with likenesses in marble." --------- One big reason Epicurus was held in such esteem - he freed people from their primal fears: fear of death and fear of the wrath of the gods. Is it any wonder followers who embraced his philosophy held him to be a savior and wanted to look upon his face as a constant reminder of his principles?

"His name became an abomination to orthodox Jews. The Christians, though by no means blind to the merits of his ethics, abhorred him for his denial of divine providence and immortality." ---------- DeWitt provides the historical and cultural context of Epicurus and Epicureanism in the ancient world. Epicurus developed a powerful philosophy embraced for hundreds of years, which included a vision that the gods are too blissful to concern themselves with humans and that `Death is nothing to us'. These were two good reasons those holding opposite beliefs despised Epicurus.

"In the succession of philosophers the place of Epicurus is immediately after Plato and Pyrrho the skeptic. Platonism and skepticism were among his chief abominations. The false opinion is to think of him opposed to Stoicism."
---------- Again, DeWitt provides the historical backdrop of what Epicurus was encountering: Platonists, Aristotelians and Skeptics. Epicurus did not outline his philosophy as a counter to the Stoics and Stoic philosophy since Zeno, the founder of Stoicism, came years after Epicurus. Rather, Epicurus was strongly anti-Platonism; matter of fact, Epicurus in many respects was the anti-Plato. DeWitt cites four main Platonic ideas (noted below) and elaborates on how Epicurus rejected all four:

1) ". . . dramatization of logic, which is called dialectic, best exemplified by the Platonic dialogues."
---------- Epicurus judged Platonic dialogues as unnecessarily complex; according to Epicurus, a student needs to study clearly stated principles, not wade through dramatic logic.

2) "The theory of ideas was rejected as an absurdity by the young Epicurus, because he was a materialist and denied all existences except atoms and space." --------- Epicurus disdained Plato’s positing a separate world of ideas or forms up in some abstract realm; his view was to equate the cosmos with nature, which is very much in keeping with our modern-day physics.

3) "... the belief that the body was a tomb or prison-house, which blurred the vision of reason and prevented perfection of knowledge. All that the human being perceived was the transient appearance of things as opposed to the eternal ideas. This to Epicurus was virtually skepticism." ---------- Epicurus clearly understood the grave dangers of rejecting and hating the body and the evidence of the senses. With great foresight, Epicurus anticipated what such a rejection and hatred of the body can lead to – the masochistic scourging and whipping and starving of the body during the medieval period.

4) ". . . planets were declared to be gods (by Plato). This seemed both shocking and absurd to Epicurus; shocking because it meant having more gods to fear, absurd because august gods were assumed to become hurling balls of fire." ---------- Again, Epicurus saw the world much in the same way as a modern-day university physicist.

And lastly, below are some key Epicurean ideas along with my comments that have a particular relevance for our 21st century
:
". . . the new creed (of Epicurus) became applicable to women as well as to men and to human beings of all ages, whether slave or free." ---------- Here we have a clear example of how Epicureanism differed from the provincial philosophy of Plato and Aristotle. The philosophy of Epicurus was urbane and universal, thus Greeks and non-Greeks, men and women and even slaves could become Epicureans.

"It was Epicurus who first extended brotherly love to embrace mankind and exalted it as the impelling motive for revealing to men the way to happiness." And " . . . he did not shrink from choosing the suspected name of pleasure as the designation of the goal of life." ---------- So, with Epicurus we have a philosophy holding all men and women to be our brothers and sisters and viewing pleasure as a key to our experience of happiness. What a treasure from the ancient world.
… (más)