I’m asked fairly often to write book reviews, and I almost always decline because of my many other commitments. But when I was invited to review a forthcoming book about the ancient philosopher Diogenes, I said yes immediately.
As an undergraduate philosophy major, I vividly remember reading about one of the earliest philosopher showdowns — Diogenes squaring off against Zeno. Zeno had crafted one of his famous paradoxes supposedly “proving” that motion was impossible. It’s the kind of argument college students can stay up all night debating — the sort that sounds airtight at two in the morning. In Zeno’s telling, before you can cross a room, you must first get halfway there, then halfway of what remains, and halfway again, on and on forever — so, technically, you can never arrive. And you have to admit, it kind of sounds like he has a point! So, maybe motion is impossible?! Diogenes wasn’t having it. He called bullshit, stood up, and walked across the room
— thereby proving, quite literally, that motion is possible. Diogenes dunking hard on Zeno is one of my favorite moments in all of ancient philosophy.
I was always curious to learn more about him, but we soon had to move on in our march through the history of philosophy. So I was delighted to have the chance to read Diogenes: The Rebellious Life and Revolutionary Philosophy of the Original Cynic by Inger Kuin, a professor of classics at the University of Virginia. The book won’t be released until next week (on November 11), but it’s already available for pre-order.
Kuin’s book begins with a reflection on what is probably the single most famous story about Diogenes: his encounter with Alexander the Great. When Alexander visited Corinth, he sought out the eccentric philosopher, who was sunbathing in the marketplace. Standing before him, the young conqueror asked if there was anything he could do for him. Diogenes looked up and replied, “Yes — stand out of my sunlight.” Alexander is said to have admired his fearless independence, remarking to his followers, “If I were not Alexander, I would wish to be Diogenes.” By now, you’re probably getting a sense of just how fascinating — and provoking — Diogenes can be.
In the rest of the book, Kuin does more than retell quirky anecdotes — as entertaining as that alone would be! She digs into how Diogenes lived his philosophy: his radical rejection of social norms, his commitment to simplicity and autonomy, his fearless truth-telling to power, and more. Finally, she shows how his outrageous life still resonates with the issues we face today — especially his defiance of corrupt authority, his mockery of false piety and wealth, and his relevance for those resisting authoritarianism and populist threats to democracy.
Reading Diogenes in this current political moment, it’s hard not to feel how urgently his example speaks to us. In an era when spin, self-promotion, and performative outrage dominate public life, Diogenes reminds us what real freedom of thought and speech can look like. He refused to flatter the powerful or conform to polite expectations; he saw through hypocrisy and said aloud what others were afraid to name. His irreverence wasn’t always just mischief — it was often moral courage.
I highly recommend Kuin’s book — and I plan to preach a sermon inspired by it soon at the Unitarian Universalist congregation where I serve as minister. It’s one of those invaluable books that make ancient wisdom feel freshly relevant to our own turbulent times.
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