Timon of Athens
Timon of Athens ( ancient Greek Τίμων Tímōn ) was an ancient Greek misanthrope who criticized the corruption of morals that had raged in Athens with biting mockery . He lived in the 5th century BC. Chr.
According to tradition, Timon, whose historicity is uncertain, was the son of an Echekratidas from Kollytos . Out of disappointment with his friends and fellow citizens, Timon is said to have withdrawn from the world and lived as a hermit at the gates of Athens in a tower-like house. Later he was mistakenly equated with the philosopher Timon of Phleius . He died of a hip dislocation for refusing medical attention.
30 BC After his defeat in the Battle of Actium , the triumvir Marcus Antonius withdrew to a lonely house near Alexandria , which he renamed Timonion after Timon because he too had been treated unfairly by his friends.
Timon was the model for Lukian's satire Timon or The Misanthrope , William Shakespeare's tragedy Timon of Athens , Henry Purcell's opera Timon of Athens , and for Molière's comedy The Misanthrope . The comedy Timon des Antiphanes is lost, and Hugo von Hofmannsthal's comedy Timon the Orator has remained a fragment.
literature
- Marie-Odile Goulet-Cazé: Timon le Misanthrope. In: Richard Goulet (ed.): Dictionnaire des philosophes antiques. Volume 6, CNRS Éditions, Paris 2016, ISBN 978-2-271-08989-2 , pp. 1231-1235
- Dirk Rohmann : Timon of Athens. In: The New Pauly (DNP). Volume 12/1, Metzler, Stuttgart 2002, ISBN 3-476-01482-7 , column 591 f.
Remarks
- ↑ Plutarch , Antonius 69, 6f. and 71, 2; Strabon 17, 1, 9, p. 794; on this Christoph Schäfer : Cleopatra . Scientific Book Society, Darmstadt 2006, ISBN 3-534-15418-5 , pp. 233 .
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Timon of Athens |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Timo Atheniensis |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Greek misanthrope |
| DATE OF BIRTH | 5th century BC Chr. |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | uncertain: in / near Athens |
| DATE OF DEATH | 5th century BC BC or 4th century BC Chr. |
| Place of death | uncertain: near Athens |