Gaius Amafinius (or Amafanius) was one of the earliest Roman writers in favour of the

Epicurean Epicureanism is a system of philosophy founded around 307 BC based upon the teachings of the ancient Greek philosopher Epicurus. Epicureanism was originally a challenge to Platonism. Later its main opponent became Stoicism. Few writings by Ep ...

philosophy. He probably lived in the late 2nd and early 1st century BC. He wrote several works, which are censured by

Cicero Marcus Tullius Cicero ( ; ; 3 January 106 BC – 7 December 43 BC) was a Roman statesman, lawyer, scholar, philosopher, and academic skeptic, who tried to uphold optimate principles during the political crises that led to the esta ...

as deficient in arrangement and style. He is mentioned by no other ancient writer but Cicero. In the '' Academica'', Cicero reveals that Amafanius translated the Greek concept of

atom Every atom is composed of a nucleus and one or more electrons bound to the nucleus. The nucleus is made of one or more protons and a number of neutrons. Only the most common variety of hydrogen has no neutrons. Every solid, liquid, gas, a ...

s as " corpuscles" (''corpusculi'') in Latin. In his ''

Tusculan Disputations The ''Tusculanae Disputationes'' (also ''Tusculanae Quaestiones''; English: ''Tusculan Disputations'') is a series of five books written by Cicero, around 45 BC, attempting to popularise Greek philosophy in Ancient Rome, including Stoicism. It is s ...

'', Cicero disapprovingly notes that Amafanius was one of the first philosophers writing in Latin at Rome: In his ''Academica'',

criticizes Amafinius and his fellow Epicurean Rabirius for their unsophisticated prose style, and says that in their efforts to introduce philosophy to common people they end up saying nothing. He concludes indignantly: "they think there is no art of speechmaking or composition."

Michel de Montaigne Michel Eyquem, Sieur de Montaigne ( ; ; 28 February 1533 – 13 September 1592), also known as the Lord of Montaigne, was one of the most significant philosophers of the French Renaissance. He is known for popularizing the essay as a lit ...

alludes to these passages in his ''

Essais The ''Essays'' (french: Essais, ) of Michel de Montaigne are contained in three books and 107 chapters of varying length. They were originally written in Middle French and were originally published in the Kingdom of France. Montaigne's stated des ...

'', book 2, chapter 17, ''De la presumption'' ("On Presumption.") Montaigne writes:Michel de Montaigne
''De la presumption''
". . . un jargon populaire, et un proceder sans definition, sans partition, sans conclusion, trouble, à la façon de celuy d'Amafanius et de Rabirius."

References

Bibliography

* ''Cicero’s Social and Political Thought'', Wood, Neal, University of California Press, 1988 (paperback edition, 1991, ). * ''Amafinius, Lucretius and Cicero'', Howe, H.H., American Journal of Philology, 77, 1951, pp57–62 2nd-century BC Romans 1st-century BC Romans 2nd-century BC philosophers 1st-century BC philosophers 2nd-century BC Latin writers 1st-century BC Latin writers Roman-era philosophers Philosophers of Roman Italy Roman-era Epicurean philosophers Year of birth unknown Year of death unknown {{philosopher-stub