Would Diogenes be considered a troll if he appeared one day on Hacker News or Reddit? I mean, look at the stuff he did!
"He showed his rejection of "normal" ideas about human decency by eating in the street, masturbating in the marketplace, urinating on those who insulted him, defecating in the theatre, and pointing at people with his middle finger. He was a self-appointed public scold whose mission was to demonstrate to the ancient Greeks that civilization is regressive."
He also rightfully rejected the illusion of supremacy by the higher classes, called out the political classes for being liars, and reminded scholars that it's a good idea to check yourself against the world sometimes.
You could find no more respectable a wielder of the yardstick of civilization than good ol' Diogenes. It takes a man who knows what savagery lies beneath to appreciate just how little we are separated from the beasts around us.
Diogenes is one of my favorite wandering philosophers, along with Nasreddin, and legendary characters from Taoism and Zen Buddhism.
In a way, they did "troll" the societies where they travelled, by living beyond their value systems, flaunting their freedom and mocking what people take seriously.
They were not trolls who take pleasure in mockery. Their way of life and thought have something to teach us, and people through history have loved these characters, as we can see from the stories we continue to tell about them.
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[ 3.5 ms ] story [ 15.6 ms ] thread"He showed his rejection of "normal" ideas about human decency by eating in the street, masturbating in the marketplace, urinating on those who insulted him, defecating in the theatre, and pointing at people with his middle finger. He was a self-appointed public scold whose mission was to demonstrate to the ancient Greeks that civilization is regressive."
You could find no more respectable a wielder of the yardstick of civilization than good ol' Diogenes. It takes a man who knows what savagery lies beneath to appreciate just how little we are separated from the beasts around us.
> He lived in Corinth for the rest of his life, which he devoted to preaching the doctrines of virtuous self-control.
Witty, smart, undesirable, revolting for all but his quick mind.
In a way, they did "troll" the societies where they travelled, by living beyond their value systems, flaunting their freedom and mocking what people take seriously.
I'd prefer the term "wise fools".
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Divine_madness
They were not trolls who take pleasure in mockery. Their way of life and thought have something to teach us, and people through history have loved these characters, as we can see from the stories we continue to tell about them.