Aristippus the Younger (; grc, Ἀρίστιππος), of
Cyrene, was the grandson of
Aristippus of Cyrene
Aristippus of Cyrene (; grc, Ἀρίστιππος ὁ Κυρηναῖος; c. 435 – c. 356 BCE) was a hedonistic Greek philosopher and the founder of the Cyrenaic school of philosophy. He was a pupil of Socrates, but adopted a very differe ...
, and is widely believed to have formalized the principles of
Cyrenaic philosophy.
He lived in the second half of the 4th century BC. His mother was
Arete
''Arete'' (Greek: ) is a concept in ancient Greek thought that, in its most basic sense, refers to 'excellence' of any kind Liddell, H.G. & Scott, R. ''A Greek–English Lexicon'', 9th ed. (Oxford, 1940), s.v.br>—especially a person or thi ...
, daughter of the elder Aristippus, and it was she who imparted her father's philosophy to her son, hence he received the nickname "Mother-taught" (''metrodidaktos''). Among his pupils was
Theodorus the Atheist
Theodorus the Atheist ( el, Θεόδωρος ὁ ἄθεος; c. 340 – c. 250 BCE), of Cyrene, was a Greek philosopher of the Cyrenaic school. He lived in both Greece and Alexandria, before ending his days in his native city of Cyrene. As a ...
. Not much else is known about Aristippus the Younger. The idea that he systemised his grandfather's philosophy is based on the authority of
Aristocles (as quoted by
Eusebius
Eusebius of Caesarea (; grc-gre, Εὐσέβιος ; 260/265 – 30 May 339), also known as Eusebius Pamphilus (from the grc-gre, Εὐσέβιος τοῦ Παμφίλου), was a Greek historian of Christianity, exegete, and Christia ...
):
Among ristippus'other hearers was his own daughter Arete, who having borne a son named him Aristippus, and he from having been introduced by her to philosophical studies was called his mother's pupil (μητροδίδακτος). He quite plainly defined the end to be the life of pleasure, ranking as pleasure that which lies in motion. For he said that there are three states affecting our temperament: one, in which we feel pain, like a storm at sea; another, in which we feel pleasure, that may be likened to a gentle undulation, for pleasure is a gentle movement, comparable to a favourable breeze; and the third is an intermediate state, in which we feel neither pain nor pleasure, which is similar to a calm. So of these feelings only, he said, we have the sensation.
There are indications that he was conflated with his grandfather.
[Debra Nails, ''The People of Plato'', ]
p. 50
/ref>
References
4th-century BC Greek people
4th-century BC philosophers
Ancient Greek ethicists
Cyrenaic philosophers
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