Ainesidemos

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Ainesidemos ( ancient Greek Αἰνησίδημος Ainēsídēmos , Latinized Aenesidemus , German also Änesidemos or Änesidem ) was an ancient Greek philosopher . He lived in the 1st century BC. BC and is considered to be the founder of Neupyrrhonism .

Ainesidemos was originally probably a supporter of academic skepticism . In his Pyrrhonic Explanations , which have not survived , he attacked academic skepticism , according to Photios : by claiming that nothing can be known (with certainty justified), academics are (negative) dogmatists. In contrast, Ainesidemos tries to create a radical skepticism, which he thought he found in Pyrrhon von Elis and his pupil Timon von Phleius .

Ainesidemos did not even want to allow the negative statement that he did not (for sure) know anything, and concluded from the fact that every reason for an assumption was preceded by an equally weighted reason for the contrary assumption, the recommendation to always abstain from judgment (so-called ἐποχή epoché ). To make it easier to find such counter-reasons, Ainesidemos set up the Ten Tropics later named after him . In life, instead of making uncertain assumptions about the alleged nature of things, one must rather follow the appearances ( φαινόμενα phainómena ).

Ainesidemos thus brought together influences from the two ancient currents of skepticism - Pyrrhonic skepticism and academic skepticism. In this way he founded the New Pyrrhonism, which he did not advocate as a new doctrine of its own, but ascribed to Pyrrhon - hence the name (New) Pyrrhonism. This, as it is systematically arranged for us in the writings of the Sextus Empiricus , goes back largely to Ainesidemos.

literature

Overview display

  • Brigitte Pérez: Énésidème. In: Richard Goulet (ed.): Dictionnaire des philosophes antiques. Volume 3, CNRS Éditions, Paris 2000, ISBN 2-271-05748-5 , pp. 90-99

Introductions and investigations

  • Julia Annas, Jonathan Barnes: The Modes of Skepticism. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge u. a. 1995 (detailed reconstruction and interpretation of the neo-pyrrhonic tropics)
  • Jonathan Barnes: Ancient skepticism and causation. In: Myles F. Burnyeat (Ed.), The Skeptical Tradition. Berkeley 1983, pp. 149-203.
  • Malte Hossenfelder : Introduction. In: Sextus Empiricus , plan of the pyrrhonic skepticism , trans. by Malte Hossenfelder. Suhrkamp, ​​Frankfurt a. M. 1968
  • Friedo Ricken : Ancient Skeptics. CH Beck, Munich 1994, pp. 68–85 (easy to read introduction)
  • Gisela Striker : The ten tropes of Aenesidemus. In: Myles F. Burnyeat (Ed.): The Skeptical Tradition. Berkeley 1983, pp. 95-115.

Remarks

  1. ^ Photios, Bibliotheca § 212.
  2. ^ Sextus Empiricus , Outline of the Pyrrhonic Skepticism I 36-163.
personal data
SURNAME Ainesidemos
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Aenesidemus; Aesidemos; Aesidemus; Aeside; Ainesidemos from Knossos
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Greek philosopher
DATE OF BIRTH 1st century BC Chr.
DATE OF DEATH 1st century BC Chr.