Dogs barking at the truth

I was recently accused of being cynical. Remembering something a former professor once said about not minding a comparison to these ancient philosophers, I decided to do a little research about what exactly I was being accused of.

The word “cynic” comes from the Greek kynikos, meaning “dog.” The Cynics were a group of philosophers who thought highly of dogs, fashioning themselves as “dogs barking at the truth.”

Actually, the name was likely a reference to their lifestyle: They scorned social custom, lived in poverty, and, like dogs, did things in public that most humans do in private. Legend has it that Diogenes of Sinope, one of the most famous Cynics, urinated on those who disagreed with him, and once, when asked to explain why he was masturbating in the Athenian Agora, replied “If only it was as easy to soothe my hunger by rubbing my belly.”

But whatever the reasons for the name, Diogenes didn’t mind being thought of as dog-like. He wasn’t that impressed with civilization and saw dogs as a worthy model for a way of life much simpler and more honest than that engaged in by human beings. And he was willing not to conform to a typical standard of living in order to call that standard into question.

So insofar as cynicism reflects the performance of actions that call into question the conventional wisdom, I can see why it might not be so bad to be thought cynical.