Talk:Great Philosopher/@comment-94.254.233.41-20180909201058/@comment-109.150.216.144-20190829181955

Looks like Plato, Socrates or Aristotle. So he would likely pose questions like his contemporaries.

But what if he was more like Diogenes the Cynic? A man who believed that manners were 'lies' that hid the true nature of the individual. A man known for his refreshingly direct attitude and who often urinated, defecated and even masturbated in public. He lived in a wine cask surrounded by dogs and lived in a way that could only be an 'honest' life.

"Everyone, he claimed, was trapped in this make-believe world which they believed was reality and, because of this, people were living in a kind of dream state. He was not the first philosopher to make this claim; Heraclitus, Xenophanes, and, most famously, Socrates all pointed out the need for human beings to wake from their dream state to full awareness of themselves and the world. Plato's famous Allegory of the Cave is devoted to this very theme. Diogenes, however, confronted the citizens of Athens daily with their lifelessness and shallow values, emulating his hero Socrates whom he never met but would have learned of from Antisthenes. Although it seems many people thought he was simply mentally ill, Diogenes would have claimed he was living a completely honest life and others should have the courage to do the same. "

https://www.ancient.eu/Diogenes_of_Sinope/

When Diogenes was approached by Alexander the Great, the most powerful man at the time, an intrigued Alexander offered him anything that he could want. Diogenes replied, "Yes. Get out of my sunlight." Alexander admired his spirit and said, "If I were not Alexander, I would wish to be Diogenes" to which Diogenes replied, "If I were not Diogenes, I would also wish to be Diogenes."