Written on December 16, 2015
How I ought to live? That is the question that most Greek philosophers asked to themselves as they lecture one another. In ancient Greece, several famous philosophers wonder to themselves about the meaning of how every human being should live. These philosophers were Gorgias of Leontini, Heraclitus, Parmenides, and, of course, Plato, who later became influenced by comparable ideas from the former three. Each of these notable Greek philosophers has compared their answers about how one ought to live albeit with some distinctions between their theories and ideas. Once Gorgias, Heraclitus, and Parmenides are discussed about their theories in their own individual works, Plato will be discussed about his agreements with their ideas in five of his notable works: Apology, Gorgias, Phaedo, Timaeus, and Philebus.
Gorgias of Leontini was notable for his work Helen of Encomium. He quoted, “For a city the finest adornment (kosmos) is a good citizenry, for a body beauty, for a soul wisdom, for an action arete, and for a speech truth; and the opposites of these are indecorous” (Hel. Para. 1). Gorgias, in his perspective, theorized that in order to live a life, one must know his good deeds and actions that his soul performs within his body. The invisible and immortal soul, or psukhe, is responsible for providing life for the human body. The most imperative aspect for the soul is excellence, or arete. Gorgias’ main theory is the psykhe must fulfill his arete in order for the human body to live a life. It’s also crucial that the soul must avoid all malevolent deeds; otherwise, there will be dire consequences for the body. Gorgias of Leontini claimed that one ought to live by understanding what the human body has done that is either benevolent or malevolent; he may be awarded or punished for all the actions he committed.
Heraclitus of Ephesus was notable for writing quotes about the human psukhe. He quoted, “Right thinking (sophronein) is the greatest excellence, and wisdom (sophia) is to speak the truth and act in accordance with nature (phusis) while paying attention to it” (Hera. 18. B112). This quote is similar to Gorgias of Leontini about one knowing his own arete, indicating that Heraclitus came to an agreement with him about an individual doing good deeds to live a life. In addition, he believed that one must be aware with the truthful and natural surroundings. Other quotes by Heraclitus are “The wise is one (to sophon), to know the intelligent plant (gnome) by which all things are steered through all” (Hera. 46. B41); “The people must fight for the law as for the city wall” (Hera. 104. B44); and “For all human laws (nomos) are nourished by one law, the divine law” (Hera. 23. B114). To Heraclitus, how one ought to live is more than just gaining arete. One also must have an intelligent plan to know about the truth of nature; one must perform good (and sacrificial) deeds for the society; and one must be aware of the society’s imperative laws, or nomos, in order to gain his arete.
Paremenides of Elea was notable for his poem about meeting with a goddess by chariot. He quoted, “It is right that you learn all things / both the unshaken heart of well-persuasive Truth / and the beliefs of mortals, in which there is no true trust. / But nevertheless you will learn these too–how it were right that the things that seem / be reliably, being indeed, the whole of things” (Parm. Lines 29-32). “From here on, learn mortal opinions, / listening to the deceitful order of my words… of which it is not right to name one–” (Parm. Lines 51-54). This is heavily similar to Gorgias of Leontini and Heraclitus of Ephesus. Parmenides subtly agreed to the idea of knowing what is right and wrong and how arete is vital for the human life. He included the theory that one ought to live by knowing what to rely on. This is complex albeit very crucial for the individual; there are many facts and opinions surrounding the minds of individuals and no one can be entirely sure whether if these facts or opinions are either erroneous or accurate. They must methodically think for themselves about what is the reliable Truth. Parmenides of Elea’s theory on how one ought to live implies that one must decipher and rely on the truth and only the truth, as well as becoming aware of and ignoring all the erroneous opinions.
Plato gained multiple influences as he wrote five of his notable works. Most of his passages pertains to the mutual theory and his theories are compatible with Gorgias, Heraclitus, and Parmenides. In Plato’s Philebus, he quoted, “We declare the life that combines pleasure and knowledge the winner” (Phil. 27d). In Timaeus, he said, “…and how a man should both lead and be led by himself in order to have the best prospects for leading a rational life” (Tim. 89d). In Phaedo, one line said, “The soul of the philosopher achieves a calm for such emotions; it follows reason and ever stays with it contemplating the true, the divine, which is not the object of opinion” (Pha. 84a). In Gorgias, Plato quoted, “…to choose the orderly life, the life that is adequate to and satisfied with its circumstances at any given time instead of the insatiable, undisciplined life” (Gorg. 493c). In Apology, one quote said, “Wealth does not bring excellence, but excellence makes wealth and everything else good for men, both individually and collectively” (Apo. 30b). All of these quotes from Plato’s five individual works correlates to gaining excellence and learning to become rational. Plato was mutual with the previous philosophers; his quote from Apology is similar to both Heraclitus and Gorgias about gaining excellence for a better life. His quote from Phaedo is compatible with Parmenides about disregarding and resisting all opinions and focusing on only the Truth. One can say that Plato’s theory to how one ought to live is by gaining arete and knowing the accurate truth and erroneous opinions. In addition, Plato theorized in Timaeus, Philebus, and Gorgias that one must ought to live by becoming as rational as he can so that his life can be fulfilled with awards for his benevolence. Virtues and knowledge are crucial because one needed to be satisfied and educated to live. This, too, is mutual with Gorgias and Heraclitus about the educated and benevolent life. Plato is also compatible with the idea of gaining a more rational, disciplined and organized life, which was under the influence of Heraclitus.
The theory of the question–how one ought to live?–is mutual for several Greek philosophers. Some can say that they agreed the answer to this theory is gaining excellence, or arete. Some would also add that one must become a well-disciplined and organized human being who is obeisant at all laws. One must be properly educated by knowing the nature of Truth from unwanted opinions. One can say that he must know his own virtues to remain satisfied until death. Overall, the answers to this philosophical question are multitudinous, as long as it correlates to excellence and other rational ideas. Thanks to Plato, Gorgias of Leontini, Heraclitus of Ephesus, and Parmenides of Elea, excellence is the accurate answer for how I ought to live.