The Academic Questions, Treatise De Finibus, and Tusculan Disputations, of M.T. Cicero, With a Sketch of the Greek Philosophers Mentioned by CiceroCicero, Marcus Tullius
Philosophy
The Academic Questions, Treatise De Finibus, and Tusculan Disputations, of M.T. Cicero, With a Sketch of the Greek Philosophers Mentioned by Cicero
Cicero, Marcus Tullius
Ethics -- Early works to 1800; Happiness -- Early works to 1800
Hiretas of Syracuse, as Theophrastus tells us, thinks that the sun, and
moon, and stars, and all the heavenly bodies, in short, stand still; and
that nothing in the world moves except the earth; and, as that turns and
revolves on its own axis with the greatest rapidity, he thinks that
everything is made to appear by it as if it were the heaven which is moved
while the earth stands still. And, indeed, some people think that Plato,
in the Timæus, asserts this, only rather obscurely. What is your opinion,
Epicurus? Speak. Do you think that the sun is so small?—Do I? Do you
yourselves think it so large? But all of you are ridiculed by him, and you
in your turn mock him. Socrates, then, is free from this ridicule, and so
is Ariston of Chios, who thinks that none of these matters can be known.
But I return to the mind and body. Is it sufficiently known by us what is
the nature of the sinews and of the veins? Do we comprehend what the mind
is?—where it is?—or, in short, whether it exists at all, or whether, as
Dicæarchus thinks, there is no such thing whatever? If there is such a
thing, do we know whether it has three divisions, as Plato thought; those
of reason, anger, and desire?—or whether it is single and uniform? If it
is single and uniform, do we know whether it is fire, or breath, or
blood?—or, as Xenocrates says, number without a body?—though, what sort of
thing that is, is not very easy to understand. And whatever it is, do we
know whether it is mortal or eternal? For many arguments are alleged on
both sides.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account