Cynicism, a word originating from the Greek term kynismos, it is a system and philosophical doctrine From cynical. In a figurative sense, cynicism has a connotation pejorative, which designates a sharp man and biting that does not respect established feelings and values or social conventions.
Someone considered cynical can also be someone who is shameless, brazen, reckless, impassive or obscene.
Cynicism was a Greek philosophical school, founded by Antisthenes, disciple of Socrates. Its name derives, according to several testimonies, from the fact that some members of the school gather at the Cinosargo, a gym located near Athens. According to others, its origin comes from the Greek word kýon (which means "dog"), due to the fact that Diogenes of Sinope slept in the place that was often used as a shelter for dogs, in order to demonstrate his disagreement with the way of life of men.
The greatest virtue for them was autarky, which is self-sufficient, and renouncing earthly goods and pleasures until achieving total independence from vital and social needs. Self-mastery allowed us to achieve happiness, understood as not being affected by the bad things in life, by laws and conventions, which were valued according to their degree of compliance with the reason.
The sage's ideal was indifference to the world. The school's origins, which date back to the 3rd and 2nd centuries BC, with a later resurgence, in the 1st and 2nd centuries d. C., were object of discussion. Some philosophers classify it as the Socratic school, along the lines of Socrates-Antisthenes-Diogenes. Others deny the Antisthenes-Diogenes relationship, do not consider it a Socratic school and see Diogenes as its founder and inspirer.
Cynicism illustrated
Cynicism Illustrated is a website where you can find several illustrations that address cynicism in a humorous way. The illustrations are by the Mexican publicist, illustrator, writer and designer Eduardo Salles.
Recycling Cynicism
The Cynicism of Recycling: The Ideological Meaning of Aluminum Can Recycling and Its Implications for Environmental Education, is an article by Philippe Layargues. According to the author, the pedagogy of the 3R's (Reduce, Reuse and Recycle) that is addressed in schools has a merely behavioral, illusory and non-reflective effect. This approach gives individuals the mentality that they can consume products (especially disposable ones) without any shyness, because if they are recyclable, they are ecological.
See too:
- ancient philosophy
- What is sarcasm?