Herillus (; also Erillus ; grc-gre, Ἥριλλος ''Herillos''; fl. 3rd century BC) of
Chalcedon
Chalcedon ( or ; , sometimes transliterated as ''Chalkedon'') was an ancient maritime town of Bithynia, in Asia Minor. It was located almost directly opposite Byzantium, south of Scutari (modern Üsküdar) and it is now a district of the cit ...
(or
Carthage
Carthage was the capital city of Ancient Carthage, on the eastern side of the Lake of Tunis in what is now Tunisia. Carthage was one of the most important trading hubs of the Ancient Mediterranean and one of the most affluent cities of the cla ...
), was a
Stoic
Stoic may refer to:
* An adherent of Stoicism; one whose moral quality is associated with that school of philosophy
* STOIC, a programming language
* ''Stoic'' (film), a 2009 film by Uwe Boll
* ''Stoic'' (mixtape), a 2012 mixtape by rapper T-Pain
* ...
philosopher and a pupil of
Zeno of Citium
Zeno of Citium (; grc-x-koine, Ζήνων ὁ Κιτιεύς, ; c. 334 – c. 262 BC) was a Hellenistic philosopher from Citium (, ), Cyprus. Zeno was the founder of the Stoic school of philosophy, which he taught in Athens from about 300 B ...
.
Philosophy
Herillus differed significantly from Zeno's teachings and held that
knowledge
Knowledge can be defined as Descriptive knowledge, awareness of facts or as Procedural knowledge, practical skills, and may also refer to Knowledge by acquaintance, familiarity with objects or situations. Knowledge of facts, also called pro ...
(ἑπιστήμη) was the goal (τέλος) of
life
Life is a quality that distinguishes matter that has biological processes, such as Cell signaling, signaling and self-sustaining processes, from that which does not, and is defined by the capacity for Cell growth, growth, reaction to Stimu ...
:
Herillus said that the chief good was knowledge; that is to say, always conducting one's self in such a way as to refer everything to the principle of living according to knowledge, and not being misled by ignorance.[Diogenes Laërtius, vii. 165]
He said that there was also a second subordinate goal (ὑποτελής, ''hypoteles''). This subordinate goal was related to the Stoic term
oikeiôsis (οἰκείωσις): the primary impulse of living creatures. He stated that even people who were not wise aimed at the subordinate goal, but only wise people aimed at the principal goal.
Herillus was accused 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 ...
of suggesting that there were two separate goals in life:
For we shall have to adopt two different plans of conduct in life: for he makes out that there are two chief goods unconnected with each other; but if they were real goods, they ought to be united; but at present they are separated, so that they never can be united.
Herillus also regarded the practicalities of everyday life, although necessary, as having no ethical value, because it did not contribute to the supreme good, and for this reason Cicero frequently associates him with the rather different philosophy of
Aristo of Chios
Aristo of Chios ( el, Ἀρίστων ὁ Χῖος ''Ariston ho Chios''; fl. c. 260 BC), also spelled Ariston, was a Greek Stoic philosopher and colleague of Zeno of Citium. He outlined a system of Stoic philosophy that was, in many ways, close ...
.
Writings
Herillus is said to have written the following works:
[Diogenes Laërtius, vii. 166]
* Περὶ ἀσκήσεως – ''On Training''
* Περὶ παθῶν – ''On the Passions''
* Περὶ ὐπολήψεως – ''On Judgment''
* Νομοθέτης – ''The Lawmaker''
* Μαιευτικός – ''Maieutics''
* Άντιφέρων – ''The Adversary''
* Διδάσκαλος – ''The Teacher''
* Διασκευάζων – ''The Preparer''
* Εὐθύνων – ''The Corrector''
* Ἑρμῆς – ''Hermes''
* Μήδεια – ''Medea''
* Θέσεων ἠθικῶν – ''Ethical theses''
* Some dialogues
Notes
References
*
{{Authority control
3rd-century BC Greek people
3rd-century BC philosophers
Stoic philosophers