Aristippus’ View of Women: Misogyny or Theoretical Tension?
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Giovanna De Paoli
Abstract
Aristippus, the founder of the Cyrenaic school, is primarily known through secondary sources that describe his radically somatic hedonism. While often criticized for being excessively selfish and indifferent to others, there are anecdotes suggesting a different side. For instance, Aristippus once faced humiliation to aid a friend at Dionysius’ court. His interactions with women also present a complex picture. Some accounts depict him as treating women as possessions or negatively, while others highlight his challenges to societal norms, such as adopting feminine attire or cohabitating with Laïs, a hetaira. Remarkably, his daughter Arete inherited and led the Cyrenaic school, teaching her son and earning recognition as a philosopher in her own right – an unconventional role for a woman at the time. This arrangement contrasts with the misogynistic views with which Aristippus is sometimes associated. In this work, I explore whether Aristippus’ seemingly disdainful attitudes toward women were specific or reflected broader theoretical tensions in Cyrenaic philosophy. I argue that the controversy surrounding Aristippus underscores a deeper theoretical challenge: reconciling radical bodily hedonism with social interactions.
Abstract
Aristippus, the founder of the Cyrenaic school, is primarily known through secondary sources that describe his radically somatic hedonism. While often criticized for being excessively selfish and indifferent to others, there are anecdotes suggesting a different side. For instance, Aristippus once faced humiliation to aid a friend at Dionysius’ court. His interactions with women also present a complex picture. Some accounts depict him as treating women as possessions or negatively, while others highlight his challenges to societal norms, such as adopting feminine attire or cohabitating with Laïs, a hetaira. Remarkably, his daughter Arete inherited and led the Cyrenaic school, teaching her son and earning recognition as a philosopher in her own right – an unconventional role for a woman at the time. This arrangement contrasts with the misogynistic views with which Aristippus is sometimes associated. In this work, I explore whether Aristippus’ seemingly disdainful attitudes toward women were specific or reflected broader theoretical tensions in Cyrenaic philosophy. I argue that the controversy surrounding Aristippus underscores a deeper theoretical challenge: reconciling radical bodily hedonism with social interactions.
Chapters in this book
- Frontmatter I
- Acknowledgments
- Contents VII
- Abbreviations
- Frontmatter XVII
- Introduction 1
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Part I: Socratic Women
- Rhodogyne and the Tradition of the Amazon Type 13
- Panthea’s Portrait in Xenophon’s Cyropaedia: Kalokagathia, Philia, Eros, and Leadership 37
- Aspasia’s Eidolon in Plato’s Menexenus 59
- Xanthippe’s Harshness: At the Root of Socrates’ Endurance and Paideutic Mission 79
- The Myrto Enigma: A Wife on the Side? 103
- The Wife of Ischomachus and the Two Aspasia in Xenophon’s Oeconomicus 145
- Theodote and Socrates’ Other Girlfriends 161
- Hipparchia’s Philosophical Contributions and Her Originality 181
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Part II: Socratics on Women
- Women in Antisthenes 203
- Xenophon’s Women: Women’s Virtue and Women’s Body 225
- Aristippus’ View of Women: Misogyny or Theoretical Tension? 245
- Plato’s Women: Extending the Socratic Insight 271
- Undermining Elite Self-Conceptions: Aspasia in the Platonic Menexenus and Theodote in Xenophon’s Memorabilia 299
- Women in Common: The Socratic Debate 321
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Part III: Socratic Philosophy as a Woman
- Was Socrates a Woman? 347
- Socrates, Hestia, and the Hearth of the City 371
- Female Container-Metaphors in Plato and Xenophon: The Chōra and the Oikos 391
- Female and Feminine in Plato’s Symposium 407
- The Pregnant Soul and Labor Pains: Female Medical Imagery in Plato 431
- The Mother and Her Child: The Paradoxes of a Socratic Metaphor 453
- About the Authors
- Index Nominum
- Index Locorum
Chapters in this book
- Frontmatter I
- Acknowledgments
- Contents VII
- Abbreviations
- Frontmatter XVII
- Introduction 1
-
Part I: Socratic Women
- Rhodogyne and the Tradition of the Amazon Type 13
- Panthea’s Portrait in Xenophon’s Cyropaedia: Kalokagathia, Philia, Eros, and Leadership 37
- Aspasia’s Eidolon in Plato’s Menexenus 59
- Xanthippe’s Harshness: At the Root of Socrates’ Endurance and Paideutic Mission 79
- The Myrto Enigma: A Wife on the Side? 103
- The Wife of Ischomachus and the Two Aspasia in Xenophon’s Oeconomicus 145
- Theodote and Socrates’ Other Girlfriends 161
- Hipparchia’s Philosophical Contributions and Her Originality 181
-
Part II: Socratics on Women
- Women in Antisthenes 203
- Xenophon’s Women: Women’s Virtue and Women’s Body 225
- Aristippus’ View of Women: Misogyny or Theoretical Tension? 245
- Plato’s Women: Extending the Socratic Insight 271
- Undermining Elite Self-Conceptions: Aspasia in the Platonic Menexenus and Theodote in Xenophon’s Memorabilia 299
- Women in Common: The Socratic Debate 321
-
Part III: Socratic Philosophy as a Woman
- Was Socrates a Woman? 347
- Socrates, Hestia, and the Hearth of the City 371
- Female Container-Metaphors in Plato and Xenophon: The Chōra and the Oikos 391
- Female and Feminine in Plato’s Symposium 407
- The Pregnant Soul and Labor Pains: Female Medical Imagery in Plato 431
- The Mother and Her Child: The Paradoxes of a Socratic Metaphor 453
- About the Authors
- Index Nominum
- Index Locorum
