Menippus of Gadara (; ''Menippos ho Gadareus''; fl. 3rd century BC) was a Cynic

satirist This is an incomplete list of writers, cartoonists and others known for involvement in satire – humorous social criticism. They are grouped by era and listed by year of birth. Included is a list of modern satires. Early satirical authors *Aes ...

. The

Menippean satire The genre of Menippean satire is a form of satire, usually in prose, that is characterized by attacking mental attitudes rather than specific individuals or entities. It has been broadly described as a mixture of allegory, picaresque narrative, an ...

genre is named after him. His works, all of which are lost, were an important influence on

Varro Marcus Terentius Varro (116–27 BCE) was a Roman polymath and a prolific author. He is regarded as ancient Rome's greatest scholar, and was described by Petrarch as "the third great light of Rome" (after Virgil and Cicero). He is sometimes call ...

and

Lucian Lucian of Samosata (Λουκιανὸς ὁ Σαμοσατεύς, 125 – after 180) was a Hellenized Syrian satirist, rhetorician and pamphleteer who is best known for his characteristic tongue-in-cheek style, with which he frequently ridi ...

, who ranks Menippus with

Antisthenes Antisthenes (; , ; 446 366 BCE) was a Greek philosopher and a pupil of Socrates. Antisthenes first learned rhetoric under Gorgias before becoming an ardent disciple of Socrates. He adopted and developed the ethical side of Socrates' teachings, ...

Diogenes Diogenes the Cynic, also known as Diogenes of Sinope (c. 413/403–c. 324/321 BC), was an ancient Greek philosopher and one of the founders of Cynicism (philosophy), Cynicism. Renowned for his ascetic lifestyle, biting wit, and radical critique ...

, and Crates as among the most notable of the Cynics.

Life

Little is known about the life of Menippus. He was of Phoenician descent, from the Greek city of

Gadara Gadara ( or ; ), in some texts Gedaris, was an ancient Hellenistic city in what is now Jordan, for a long time member of the Decapolis city league, a former bishopric and present Latin Catholic titular see. Its ruins are today located at Umm ...

Blank, David
"Philodemus"
The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Spring 2019 Edition), Edward N. Zalta (ed.), accessed 3 June 2020. in

Coele-Syria Coele-Syria () was a region of Syria in classical antiquity. The term originally referred to the "hollow" Beqaa Valley between the Lebanon and the Anti-Lebanon mountain ranges, but sometimes it was applied to a broader area of the region of Sy ...

. Strabo's Geographybr>16.2.29
/ref> He was originally a

slave Slavery is the ownership of a person as property, especially in regards to their labour. Slavery typically involves compulsory work, with the slave's location of work and residence dictated by the party that holds them in bondage. Enslavemen ...

, in the service of a citizen of

Pontus Pontus or Pontos may refer to: * Short Latin name for the Pontus Euxinus, the Greek name for the Black Sea (aka the Euxine sea) * Pontus (mythology), a sea god in Greek mythology * Pontus (region), on the southern coast of the Black Sea, in modern ...

, but in some way obtained his freedom and relocated to Thebes.

Diogenes Laërtius Diogenes Laërtius ( ; , ; ) was a biographer of the Greek philosophers. Little is definitively known about his life, but his surviving book ''Lives and Opinions of Eminent Philosophers'' is a principal source for the history of ancient Greek ph ...

relates a dubious story that he amassed a fortune as a money-lender, lost it, and committed

suicide Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Risk factors for suicide include mental disorders, physical disorders, and substance abuse. Some suicides are impulsive acts driven by stress (such as from financial or ac ...

Writings

His works (written in a mixture of

prose Prose is language that follows the natural flow or rhythm of speech, ordinary grammatical structures, or, in writing, typical conventions and formatting. Thus, prose ranges from informal speaking to formal academic writing. Prose differs most n ...

and verse) are all lost. He discussed serious subjects in a spirit of ridicule, and especially delighted in attacking the

Epicureans Epicureanism is a system of philosophy founded 307 BCE based upon the teachings of Epicurus, an ancient Greek philosopher. Epicurus was an atomist and materialist, following in the steps of Democritus. His materialism led him to religious s ...

and

Stoics Stoicism is a school of Hellenistic philosophy that flourished in ancient Greece and Rome. The Stoics believed that the universe operated according to reason, ''i.e.'' by a God which is immersed in nature itself. Of all the schools of ancient ...

Strabo Strabo''Strabo'' (meaning "squinty", as in strabismus) was a term employed by the Romans for anyone whose eyes were distorted or deformed. The father of Pompey was called "Gnaeus Pompeius Strabo, Pompeius Strabo". A native of Sicily so clear-si ...

and Stephanus call him the "earnest-jester" (, '' spoudogeloios''). His writings exercised considerable influence upon later literature, and the

genre is named after him. Although the writings of Menippus no longer survive, there are some fragments of

's ''Saturae Menippeae'', which were written in imitation of Menippus. One of the dialogues attributed to

, his avowed imitator, who frequently mentions him, is called ''Menippus'', but since the sub-title ("The Oracle of the Dead") resembles that of a work ascribed to Menippus by Diogenes Laërtius, it has been suggested that it is imitated from his ''Necromancy''. Diogenes Laërtius says the following works were written by Menippus: * Νέκυια – ''Necromancy'' * Διαθῆκαι – ''Wills'' * Ἐπιστολαὶ κεκομψευμέναι ἀπὸ τῶν θεῶν προσώπου – ''Letters artificially composed as if by the Gods'' * Πρὸς τοὺς φυσικοὺς καὶ μαθηματικοὺς καὶ γραμματικοὺς – ''Replies to the Natural Philosophers, and Mathematicians, and Grammarians'' * Γονὰς Ἐπικούρου – ''The Birth of Epicurus'' * Τὰς θρησκευομένας ὑπ' αὐτῶν εἰκάδας – ''The School's reverence of the twentieth day'' (celebrated in the

Epicurean Epicureanism is a system of philosophy founded 307 BCE based upon the teachings of Epicurus, an ancient Greek philosopher. Epicurus was an atomist and materialist, following in the steps of Democritus. His materialism led him to religious s ...

school) In addition,

Athenaeus Athenaeus of Naucratis (, or Nαυκράτιος, ''Athēnaios Naukratitēs'' or ''Naukratios''; ) was an ancient Greek rhetorician and Grammarian (Greco-Roman), grammarian, flourishing about the end of the 2nd and beginning of the 3rd century ...

mentions works called ''Symposium'' and ''

Arcesilaus Arcesilaus (; ; 316/5–241/0 BC) was a Greece, Greek Hellenistic philosophy, Hellenistic philosopher. He was the founder of Academic Skepticism and what is variously called the Second or Middle or New Academy – the phase of the Platonic Acade ...

'', and Diogenes Laërtius mentions a ''Sale of Diogenes'' ()Diogenes Laërtius, vi. 29. written by Menippus which seems to be the main source of the story that

Diogenes of Sinope Diogenes the Cynic, also known as Diogenes of Sinope (c. 413/403–c. 324/321 BC), was an ancient Greek philosopher and one of the founders of Cynicism. Renowned for his ascetic lifestyle, biting wit, and radical critiques of social conventi ...

was captured by pirates and sold into slavery.

Notes

References

External links

''Lives & Writings on the Cynics''
directory of literary references to Ancient Cynics

– Lucian's dialogue in which Menippus visits

Hades Hades (; , , later ), in the ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, mythology, is the god of the dead and the king of the Greek underworld, underworld, with which his name became synonymous. Hades was the eldest son of Cronus and Rhea ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Menippus of Gadara 3rd-century BC Greek philosophers 3rd-century BC Phoenician people 3rd-century BC Greek poets Ancient Greek satirists Ancient Greek slaves and freedmen Cynic philosophers Hellenistic-era philosophers from Syria Phoenician philosophers Year of birth unknown Year of death unknown