HELLENISTIC

SCHOOLS

Julia Sánchez Román

TABLE OF CONTENTS:
Introduction.
Epicureanism.
Stoicism.
Cynicism.
Scepticism.
Conclusion
Bibliography
INTRODUCTION
They were born during the Hellenistic period, from the death of Alexander the
Great (323 BC) to the Roman conquest of Egypt (30 BC).

The philosophers
For this reason, they are The main schools are
belonging to this period
also called schools of Epicureanism, Stoicism,
begin to look for a
happiness. Cynicism and Scepticism.
solution to reach
happiness individually.
EPICUREISM "ATTAINING HAPPINESS THROUGH
PLEASURE".

He considered that pleasure and happiness go hand in

hand.

Epicureanism is based on the search for spiritual pleasures and the

Epicuro
absence of fear in order to enjoy life.

It is a materialistic current that advocates satisfying our pleasures but in a rational way.
 Origin
The doctrine of Epicureanism was taught by Epicurus of Samos.

This school became famous for the At the age of 18 he moved to

cultivation of friendship and for
allowing the participation of women
and slaves, unlike other Hellenic
philosophical schools, which
generated a great scandal and strong
reactions.
Athens after having travelled
all over Greece, where he
The Garden of Epicurus founded his own school
known as the "Garden of
Epicurus".
What is Epicureanism?
Human beings are happy when they achieve the perfect balance between body and mind, which is called
ataraxia.
Pleasures should be spiritual as well as physical, and their concept of happiness also includes the absence of
disturbance and pain in order to achieve it.

EPICUREAN PHILOSOPHY IS THAT OF AN ETHICS OF PLEASURE.

It is held that in order to achieve a happy life there must
be no presence of pain, either physical or moral. In this
sense, he pointed out that the presence of pleasure TYPES OF PLEASURES:
indicated the absence of pain, as well as of any kind of
- Natural and necessary.
affliction, whether physical, such as hunger or sexual
tension, or mental, such as boredom, apathy or anger. - Natural but not necessary.
- Unnatural and not necessary.
- Unnatural but necessary.
EPICUREAN CONSIDERED THAT PLEASURES SHOULD NOT BE LIMITED TO THE BODY, BUT SHOULD ALSO SATISFY THE
PLEASURES OF THE MIND.

While those of the body
were more important to
satisfy, they were also
shorter.
Hence the importance of seeking
a balance between these
pleasures (ataraxia), in order to
achieve full happiness, is
promulgated.
On the other hand, those of the
soul, although more complicated,
were also more durable and
helped to mitigate the pains of the
body.

THIS PHILOSOPHY IS CONSIDERED MATERIALISTIC, IN ORDER TO FREE THEMSELVES FROM FEAR AND
ACHIEVE PLEASURE, HUMAN BEINGS HAD TO FREE THEMSELVES FROM:

fear of physical pain

fear of the gods

fear of death
CYNICISM. "LIVE LIKE AN ANIMAL IN
ORDER TO BE FREE AND
Origin
ACHIEVE HAPPINESS".

He founded the Cynic school in Greece during

the second half of the 4th century BC.

He was one of its most recognized and representative

Antisthenes philosophers, becoming the greatest exponent of this
school, to this contributed his eccentric life and his Diogenes of Sinope

famous phrase "I am looking for the man".

What is Cynicism?
It is a philosophy that aims to achieve happiness through wisdom, liberation of the spirit and the
attainment of virtue.
They believed that happiness had to do with a simple, animal-like life.
They replaced the values established by society with those of nature.
Cynics
ci

They considered it a virtue to live with autarchy (independence) and self-

sufficiency.
They valued a wild life more than one subject to the rules of the herd.
They held that happiness could only be achieved through independence and
They were highly criticised
looked down on those members of the herd who sought it in wealth.
by other philosophers
such as Aristotle and Plato. They despised rules, institutions, customs and everything that was a bondage
to man.
STOICISM THE MASTERY OF EMOTIONS
Origin TO REACH HAPPINESS

The Stoic school was founded in Athens during the 3rd century BC by Zenon of
Citius.

Zenon of Citius

Originally known as Zenonism, the Stoic movement

takes its name from the term "Stoa Poikile" which was a
Stoa Poikile
portico located to the east of the Agora in Athens, where
Zeno met with his disciples, and for this reason they are
known as Stoics.
What is Stoicism?
It is a philosophical doctrine that practised the mastery of the passions that disturb life by the use of virtue and reason. As
such, its aim was to attain happiness and wisdom by dispensing with comforts, material goods and fortune. The ideal of the
Stoics was to achieve imperturbability and a certain degree of independence from the external world.

The stoic spirit must be calm, self-controlled and

In order to achieve
disciplined, both in the face of misfortune and in the
impertubability, ataraxia
face of prosperity.
Its four great virtues : Its three phases:
Practical knowledge Early Stoicism, headed by Zenon and Chrysippus.
Middle Stoicism characterised by the contributions of
Temperance
Panaetius and Posidonius.
Justice
New Stoicism, represented by figures of the stature of
Courage Seneca, Epictetus and Marcus Aurelius.
ESCEPTICISM
Origin
The origin of this current can be
found in Ancient Greece at the same
time as Plato's Academy, since it was
the detractors of the Academy who
promoted scepticism as a
philosophical attitude.
"NON-EXISTENCE OF TRUTH".
Scepticism began with the Pyrrhonians,
who were the followers of the Greek
philosopher Pyrrhon of Elis, who founded
the sceptical school known as
"Pyrrhonism", to which philosophers
Pyrrhon of Elis
such as Timon of Syllogus and Sextus
Empiricus belonged.
What is scepticism?
Scepticism is a philosophical current that questions everything there is, the truth does not exist.

The sceptical attitude is that of

the person who does not make The suspension of judgement or
judgements, only opinions. epojé , leads to ataraxia,

For sceptics, neither the senses nor reason can
provide true knowledge, so it is recommended
to refrain from making judgements and remain
indifferent, to try to achieve that state of mind
and inner calm (ataraxia) that leads to
happiness.
On the basis of this position, there is no
need for objective truth, since it does not
exist, thus avoiding arguments, which
leads to mental tranquillity.
IMAGE AND SLOGAN
"THE MASTERY OF EMOTIONS TO REACH "NON-EXISTENCE OF TRUTH".
HAPPINESS"

Stoicism Scepticism

Epicureanism Cynicism.

"ATTAINING HAPPINESS THROUGH "LIVE LIKE AN ANIMAL IN ORDER TO BE

PLEASURE". FREE AND ACHIEVE HAPPINESS".
CONCLUSION
This homework has taught me that the Hellenistic Schools are currents of thought that seek what man
has desired so much since the beginning of humanity, to be happy, each of them has opted for a
different method, one through the mastery of emotions, another through the balance of pleasures,
another by returning to simplicity and another through indifference avoiding all conflict, but in the end
they all coincide in the same end that remains the same that we all pursue in our lives.
Having said that, I believe that we are not aware that each and every one of us in our own way applies in
our daily lives some of the methods used by the above philosophers to achieve happiness.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
https://www.unprofesor.com/ciencias-sociales/escepticismo-resumen-y-caracteristicas-4397.html
https://www.significados.com/escepticismo/
https://concepto.de/estoicismo/
https://enciclopediadehistoria.com/estoicismo/
https://granada.nueva-acropolis.es/granada-articulos/filosofia/13000-escuelas-de-filosofia-la-escuela-estoica-7822
https://elestoico.com/que-es-estoicismo-definicion/
https://filco.es/epicureismo/
https://concepto.de/epicureismo/
https://psicologiaymente.com/cultura/epicureismo
https://mercaba.org/FICHAS/Enciclopedia/C/escuela_cinica_de_filosofia.htm
https://filco.es/cinicos-los-grandes-filosofos-de-la-libertad/
https://www.elconfidencial.com/alma-corazon-vida/2022-01-27/cinismo-filosofia-provocacion-social_3362267/