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Zeno of Citium (; grc-x-koine, Ζήνων ὁ Κιτιεύς, ; c. 334 – c. 262 BC) was a
Hellenistic In Classical antiquity, the Hellenistic period covers the time in Mediterranean history after Classical Greece, between the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC and the emergence of the Roman Empire, as signified by the Battle of Actium in ...
philosopher from
Citium Kition ( Egyptian: ; Phoenician: , , or , ; Ancient Greek: , ; Latin: ) was a city-kingdom on the southern coast of Cyprus (in present-day Larnaca). According to the text on the plaque closest to the excavation pit of the Kathari site (as of ...
(, ),
Cyprus Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is ...
. Zeno was the founder of the Stoic school of philosophy, which he taught in
Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates a ...
from about 300 BC. Based on the moral ideas of the Cynics, Stoicism laid great emphasis on goodness and peace of mind gained from living a life of
virtue Virtue ( la, virtus) is morality, moral excellence. A virtue is a trait or quality that is deemed to be morally good and thus is Value (ethics), valued as a foundation of principle and good moral being. In other words, it is a behavior that sh ...
in accordance with
nature Nature, in the broadest sense, is the physical world or universe. "Nature" can refer to the phenomena of the physical world, and also to life in general. The study of nature is a large, if not the only, part of science. Although humans are ...
. It proved very popular, and flourished as one of the major schools of philosophy from the
Hellenistic period In Classical antiquity, the Hellenistic period covers the time in Mediterranean history after Classical Greece, between the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC and the emergence of the Roman Empire, as signified by the Battle of Actium in ...
through to the
Roman era In modern historiography, ancient Rome refers to Roman civilisation from the founding of the city of Rome in the 8th century BC to the collapse of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century AD. It encompasses the Roman Kingdom (753–509 BC ...
, and enjoyed revivals in the Renaissance as Neostoicism and in the current era as Modern Stoicism.


Life

Zeno was born c. 334 BC, in
Citium Kition ( Egyptian: ; Phoenician: , , or , ; Ancient Greek: , ; Latin: ) was a city-kingdom on the southern coast of Cyprus (in present-day Larnaca). According to the text on the plaque closest to the excavation pit of the Kathari site (as of ...
in
Cyprus Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is ...
. His ancestry is disputed between Phoenician and Greek, because Citium contained both Phoenician and Greek inhabitants. Some historians consider him to have been of Phoenician descent, while other historians say that there is no real evidence for this, and consider him to be of Greek descent. A few believe that he was of mixed Greco-Phoenician descent. The only things that historians know with certainty, are that Zeno had a Greek name, a Greek higher education and that there is no evidence he knew a language other than Greek. His father, Mnaseas, had a name ambiguously meaningful both in Phoenician ("one causing to forget") and in Greek ("mindful"). His mother and her name are not recorded. Most of the details known about his life come from the biography and anecdotes preserved by Diogenes Laërtius in his '' Lives and Opinions of Eminent Philosophers'', a few of which are confirmed by the ''
Suda The ''Suda'' or ''Souda'' (; grc-x-medieval, Σοῦδα, Soûda; la, Suidae Lexicon) is a large 10th-century Byzantine encyclopedia of the ancient Mediterranean world, formerly attributed to an author called Soudas (Σούδας) or Souida ...
'' (a 10th-century Byzantine encyclopedia). Diogenes reports that Zeno's interest in philosophy began when "he consulted the oracle to know what he should do to attain the best life, and that the god's response was that he should take on the complexion of the dead. Whereupon, perceiving what this meant, he studied ancient authors." Zeno became a wealthy merchant. On a voyage from
Phoenicia Phoenicia () was an ancient thalassocratic civilization originating in the Levant region of the eastern Mediterranean, primarily located in modern Lebanon. The territory of the Phoenician city-states extended and shrank throughout their his ...
to
Peiraeus Piraeus ( ; el, Πειραιάς ; grc, Πειραιεύς ) is a port city within the Athens urban area ("Greater Athens"), in the Attica region of Greece. It is located southwest of Athens' city centre, along the east coast of the Saronic ...
he survived a shipwreck, after which he went to Athens and visited a bookseller. There he encountered Xenophon's ''
Memorabilia A souvenir (), memento, keepsake, or token of remembrance is an object a person acquires for the memories the owner associates with it. A souvenir can be any object that can be collected or purchased and transported home by the traveler as a ...
''. He was so pleased with the book's portrayal of
Socrates Socrates (; ; –399 BC) was a Greek philosopher from Athens who is credited as the founder of Western philosophy and among the first moral philosophers of the ethical tradition of thought. An enigmatic figure, Socrates authored no t ...
that he asked the bookseller where men like Socrates were to be found. Just then, Crates of Thebesthe most famous Cynic living at that time in
Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders wi ...
happened to be walking by, and the bookseller pointed to him. Zeno is described as a haggard, dark-skinned person, living a spare, ascetic life despite his wealth. This coincides with the influences of Cynic teaching, and was, at least in part, continued in his Stoic philosophy. From the day Zeno became Crates’ pupil, he showed a strong bent for philosophy, though with too much native modesty to assimilate Cynic shamelessness. Hence Crates, desirous of curing this defect in him, gave him a potful of lentil-soup to carry through the Ceramicus (the pottery district); and when he saw that Zeno was ashamed and tried to keep it out of sight, Crates broke the pot with a blow of his staff. As Zeno began to run off in embarrassment with the lentil-soup flowing down his legs, Crates chided, "Why run away, my little Phoenician? Nothing terrible has befallen you." Apart from Crates, Zeno studied under the philosophers of the Megarian school, including Stilpo, and the dialecticians Diodorus Cronus, and
Philo Philo of Alexandria (; grc, Φίλων, Phílōn; he, יְדִידְיָה, Yəḏīḏyāh (Jedediah); ), also called Philo Judaeus, was a Hellenistic Jewish philosopher who lived in Alexandria, in the Roman province of Egypt. Philo's de ...
. He is also said to have studied Platonist philosophy under the direction of Xenocrates, and Polemo. Zeno began teaching in the
colonnade In classical architecture, a colonnade is a long sequence of columns joined by their entablature, often free-standing, or part of a building. Paired or multiple pairs of columns are normally employed in a colonnade which can be straight or cur ...
in the Agora of Athens known as the Stoa Poikile (Greek Στοὰ Ποικίλη) in 301 BC. His disciples were initially called "Zenonians," but eventually they came to be known as "Stoics," a name previously applied to poets who congregated in the Stoa Poikile. Among the admirers of Zeno was king Antigonus II Gonatas of
Macedon Macedonia (; grc-gre, Μακεδονία), also called Macedon (), was an ancient kingdom on the periphery of Archaic and Classical Greece, and later the dominant state of Hellenistic Greece. The kingdom was founded and initially ruled ...
ia, who, whenever he came to Athens, would visit Zeno. Zeno is said to have declined an invitation to visit Antigonus in Macedonia, although their supposed correspondence preserved by Laërtius is undoubtedly the invention of a later writer. Zeno instead sent his friend and disciple Persaeus, who had lived with Zeno in his house. Among Zeno's other pupils there were Aristo of Chios, Sphaerus, and Cleanthes who succeeded Zeno as the head ('' scholarch'') of the Stoic school in Athens. Zeno is said to have declined Athenian citizenship when it was offered to him, fearing that he would appear unfaithful to his native land, where he was highly esteemed, and where he contributed to the restoration of its baths, after which his name was inscribed upon a pillar there as "Zeno the philosopher". We are also told that Zeno was of an earnest, gloomy disposition; that he preferred the company of the few to the many; that he was fond of burying himself in investigations; and that he disliked verbose and elaborate speeches. Diogenes Laërtius has preserved many clever and witty remarks by Zeno, although these anecdotes are generally considered unreliable. Zeno died around 262 BC. Laërtius reports about his death: During his lifetime, Zeno received appreciation for his philosophical and pedagogical teachings. Among other things, Zeno was honored with the golden crown, and a tomb was built in honor of his moral influence on the youth of his era. The crater
Zeno Zeno ( grc, Ζήνων) may refer to: People * Zeno (name), including a list of people and characters with the name Philosophers * Zeno of Elea (), philosopher, follower of Parmenides, known for his paradoxes * Zeno of Citium (333 – 264 BC), ...
on the
Moon The Moon is Earth's only natural satellite. It is the fifth largest satellite in the Solar System and the largest and most massive relative to its parent planet, with a diameter about one-quarter that of Earth (comparable to the width of ...
is named in his honour.


Philosophy

Following the ideas of the Old Academy, Zeno divided
philosophy Philosophy (from , ) is the systematized study of general and fundamental questions, such as those about existence, reason, knowledge, values, mind, and language. Such questions are often posed as problems to be studied or resolved. ...
into three parts:
logic Logic is the study of correct reasoning. It includes both formal and informal logic. Formal logic is the science of deductively valid inferences or of logical truths. It is a formal science investigating how conclusions follow from prem ...
(a wide subject including rhetoric,
grammar In linguistics, the grammar of a natural language is its set of structural constraints on speakers' or writers' composition of clauses, phrases, and words. The term can also refer to the study of such constraints, a field that includes doma ...
, and the theories of
perception Perception () is the organization, identification, and interpretation of sensory information in order to represent and understand the presented information or environment. All perception involves signals that go through the nervous syste ...
and thought);
physics Physics is the natural science that studies matter, its fundamental constituents, its motion and behavior through space and time, and the related entities of energy and force. "Physical science is that department of knowledge which ...
(not just
science Science is a systematic endeavor that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe. Science may be as old as the human species, and some of the earliest archeological evidence ...
, but the
divine Divinity or the divine are things that are either related to, devoted to, or proceeding from a deity.divine< ...
nature of the universe as well); and
ethics Ethics or moral philosophy is a branch of philosophy that "involves systematizing, defending, and recommending concepts of right and wrong behavior".''Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy'' The field of ethics, along with aesthetics, concer ...
, the end goal of which was to achieve eudaimonia through the right way of living according to Nature. Because Zeno's ideas were later expanded upon by Chrysippus and other Stoics, it can be difficult to determine precisely what he thought. But his general views can be outlined as follows:


Logic

In his treatment of logic, Zeno was influenced by Stilpo and the other
Megarians Megara (; el, Μέγαρα, ) is a historic town and a municipality in West Attica, Greece. It lies in the northern section of the Isthmus of Corinth opposite the island of Salamis, which belonged to Megara in archaic times, before being taken ...
. Zeno urged the need to lay down a basis for logic because the wise person must know how to avoid deception.
Cicero Marcus Tullius Cicero ( ; ; 3 January 106 BC – 7 December 43 BC) was a Roman statesman, lawyer, scholar, philosopher, and academic skeptic, who tried to uphold optimate principles during the political crises that led to the esta ...
accused Zeno of being inferior to his philosophical predecessors in his treatment of logic, and it seems true that a more exact treatment of the subject was laid down by his successors, including Chrysippus. Zeno divided true conceptions into the comprehensible and the incomprehensible, permitting for free-will the power of assent (''sinkatathesis''/συνκατάθεσις) in distinguishing between sense impressions.Cicero, ''Academica'', i. 11. Zeno said that there were four stages in the process leading to true
knowledge Knowledge can be defined as awareness of facts or as practical skills, and may also refer to familiarity with objects or situations. Knowledge of facts, also called propositional knowledge, is often defined as true belief that is distin ...
, which he illustrated with the example of the flat, extended hand, and the gradual closing of the fist:
Zeno stretched out his fingers, and showed the palm of his hand, – "Perception," – he said, – "is a thing like this."– Then, when he had closed his fingers a little, – "Assent is like this." – Afterwards, when he had completely closed his hand, and showed his fist, that, he said, was Comprehension. From which simile he also gave that state a new name, calling it ''
katalepsis ''Katalepsis'' ( el, κατάληψις, "grasping") in Stoic philosophy, that meant comprehension. To the Stoic philosophers, ''katalepsis'' was an important premise regarding one's state of mind as it relates to grasping fundamental philosophi ...
'' (κατάληψις). But when he brought his left hand against his right, and with it took a firm and tight hold of his fist: – "Knowledge" – he said, was of that character; and that was what none but a wise person possessed.


Physics

The
universe The universe is all of space and time and their contents, including planets, stars, galaxies, and all other forms of matter and energy. The Big Bang theory is the prevailing cosmological description of the development of the univers ...
, in Zeno's view, is God: a divine reasoning entity, where all the parts belong to the whole. Into this pantheistic system he incorporated the physics of
Heraclitus Heraclitus of Ephesus (; grc-gre, Ἡράκλειτος , "Glory of Hera"; ) was an ancient Greek pre-Socratic philosopher from the city of Ephesus, which was then part of the Persian Empire. Little is known of Heraclitus's life. He wrot ...
; the universe contains a divine artisan-fire, which foresees everything,Cicero, ''de Natura Deorum'', ii. 22. and extending throughout the universe, must produce everything:
Zeno, then, defines nature by saying that it is artistically working fire, which advances by fixed methods to creation. For he maintains that it is the main function of art to create and produce and that what the hand accomplishes in the productions of the arts we employ, is accomplished much more artistically by nature, that is, as I said, by artistically working fire, which is the master of the other arts.
This divine fire, or aether, is the basis for all activity in the universe, operating on otherwise passive matter, which neither increases nor diminishes itself. The primary substance in the universe comes from fire, passes through the stage of air, and then becomes water: the thicker portion becoming earth, and the thinner portion becoming air again, and then rarefying back into fire. Individual souls are part of the same fire as the world-soul of the universe. Following Heraclitus, Zeno adopted the view that the universe underwent regular cycles of formation and destruction. The nature of the universe is such that it accomplishes what is right and prevents the opposite,Cicero, ''de Natura Deorum'', i. 14. and is identified with unconditional Fate, while allowing it the free-will attributed to it.


Ethics

Like the Cynics, Zeno recognised a single, sole and simple good, which is the only goal to strive for. "Happiness is a good flow of life," said Zeno, and this can only be achieved through the use of right reason coinciding with the universal reason (''
Logos ''Logos'' (, ; grc, λόγος, lógos, lit=word, discourse, or reason) is a term used in Western philosophy, psychology and rhetoric and refers to the appeal to reason that relies on logic or reason, inductive and deductive reasoning. Aris ...
''), which governs everything. A bad feeling (''pathos'') "is a disturbance of the mind repugnant to reason, and against Nature." This consistency of soul, out of which morally good actions spring, is
virtue Virtue ( la, virtus) is morality, moral excellence. A virtue is a trait or quality that is deemed to be morally good and thus is Value (ethics), valued as a foundation of principle and good moral being. In other words, it is a behavior that sh ...
, true good can only consist in virtue. Zeno deviated from the Cynics in saying that things that are morally adiaphora (indifferent) could nevertheless have value. Things have a relative value in proportion to how they aid the natural instinct for self-preservation. That which is to be preferred is a "fitting action" ('' kathêkon''/καθῆκον), a designation Zeno first introduced. Self-preservation, and the things that contribute towards it, has only a conditional value; it does not aid happiness, which depends only on moral actions. Just as virtue can only exist within the dominion of reason, so vice can only exist with the rejection of reason. Virtue is absolutely opposed to vice, the two cannot exist in the same thing together, and cannot be increased or decreased; no one moral action is more virtuous than another. All actions are either good or bad, since impulses and desires rest upon free consent, and hence even passive mental states or emotions that are not guided by reason are immoral, and produce immoral actions. Zeno distinguished four negative emotions: desire, fear, pleasure and sorrow (''epithumia, phobos, hêdonê, lupê'' / ἐπιθυμία, φόβος, ἡδονή, λύπη), and he was probably responsible for distinguishing the three corresponding positive emotions: will, caution, and joy (''boulêsis, eulabeia, chara'' / βούλησις, εὐλάβεια, χαρά), with no corresponding rational equivalent for pain. All errors must be rooted out, not merely set aside, and replaced with right reason.


Works

None of Zeno's original writings have survived except as fragmentary quotations preserved by later writers. The most famous of his works was Zeno's ''Republic'', written in conscious imitation of, or opposition to,
Plato Plato ( ; grc-gre, Πλάτων ; 428/427 or 424/423 – 348/347 BC) was a Greek philosopher born in Athens during the Classical period in Ancient Greece. He founded the Platonist school of thought and the Academy, the first institution ...
's '' Republic''. Although it has not survived, more is known about it than any of his other works. It outlined Zeno's vision of the ideal Stoic society. A manuscript that was attributed to Zeno, matching a known title of one of Zeno's works, Περὶ φύσεως (''On Nature),'' was discovered in 1949 in an Old Armenian translation. In 1956 it was translated into Russian and published with an extensive commentary. Subsequent philological investigation concluded that the author could not have been Zeno and was instead an anonymous Christian philosopher of the late sixth century or a little later, writing in the tradition of ancient philosophy, but doing so as a Christian. He is now known as Pseudo-Zeno. His work shows an integration of Christian and philosophical concepts, but in a very restrained way.M E Stone and M E Shirinian, ''Pseudo-Zeno: Anonymous Philosophical Treatise'' December 1, 1999, p. 18 The titles of many of Zeno's writings are, however, known and are as follows: * Ethical writings: ** Πολιτεία – '' Republic'' ** Περὶ τοῦ κατὰ φύσιν βίου – ''On Life according to Nature'' ** Περὶ ὁρμῆς ἢ Περὶ ἀνθρώπου φύσεως – ''On Impulse, or on the Nature of Humans'' ** Περὶ παθῶν – ''On Passions'' ** Περὶ τοῦ καθήκοντος – ''On Duty'' ** Περὶ νόμου – ''On Law'' ** Περὶ τῆς Ἑλληνικῆς παιδείας – ''On Greek Education'' * Physical writings: ** Περὶ ὄψεως – ''On Sight'' ** Περὶ τοῦ ὅλου – ''On the Universe'' ** Περὶ σημείων – ''On Signs'' ** Πυθαγορικά – ''Pythagorean Doctrines'' * Logical writings: ** Καθολικά – ''General Things'' ** Περὶ λέξεων ** Προβλημάτων Ὁμηρικῶν εʹ – ''Homeric Problems'' ** Περὶ ποιητικῆς ἀκροάσεως – ''On Poetical Readings'' * Other works: ** Τέχνη ** Λύσεις – ''Solutions'' ** Ἔλεγχοι βʹ ** Ἄπομνημονεύματα Κράτητος ἠθικά ** Περὶ οὐσίας – ''On Being'' ** Περὶ φύσεως – ''On Nature'' ** Περὶ λόγου – ''On the Logos'' ** Εἰς Ἡσιόδου θεογονίαν ** Διατριβαί – ''Discourses'' ** Χρεῖαι


Notes


References

* * * *


Further reading

* Hunt, Harold. ''A Physical Interpretation of the Universe. The Doctrines of Zeno the Stoic''. Melbourne: Melbourne University Press, 1976. * Long, Anthony A., Sedley, David N. ''The Hellenistic Philosophers'', Volume 1. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1987. * * Pearson, Alfred C
''Fragments of Zeno and Cleanthes''
(1891). Greek/Latin fragments with English commentary. * Reale, Giovanni. ''A History of Ancient Philosophy. III. The systems of the Hellenistic Age'', (translated by John R. Catan, 198
''Zeno, the Foundation of the Stoa, and the Different Phases of Stoicism''
* Schofield, Malcolm. ''The Stoic Idea of the City''. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1991.


External links



by Robin Turner i
''Sensible Marks of Ideas''


by Paul Harrison.
Selected Bibliography on the Early Stoic Logicians: Zeno, Cleanthes, Chrysippus
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