Fundamental to Galen¶s self-understanding and an integral part of his self-
presentation was his commitment to living the philosophic life. This is shown by his serious attempt at achieving these goals in his own life and of sharing the principals of living this life with others. However, other passages in his works often show his failure to achieve these goals in his own life. Furthermore his open and abusive criticism of others who failed even to make the attempt at living this life highlight his own shortcomings even more
15 May ( 1968 ) 10.
16 DeLacy (1972) has briefly examined Plato¶s relationship to Galen¶s medical doctrines. 17 On the punishment of slaves see section 5.1.4 and on education see section 10.4.
CHAPTER 9:THE PHILOSOPHIC LIFE
156
9.3.1 Modesty
Swain draws particular attention to a passage in MM (K10.456-8) where Galen writes that there was a period in his life when he did not put his name on his works because of his antipathy to fame. Furthermore he asks his friend not to add his name to these works or to praise them or him too highly. Swain argues that this is a false claim of modesty that does not sit well.18 Certainly the claim that he did not seek
fame seems extraordinary in the light of many of Galen¶s other remarks such as his complaint that statues are raised to honour chariot drivers but not intellectuals.19 But, in Galen¶s defence on this occasion, he does say that he only refrained from attributing his works at one particular time, that of his setting his heart on Truth. This apparently happened while he was still studying in Pergamum.20 It was at this
period when he was doing lots of secondary research and gathering together and assessing the wisdom of the earlier medical writers.21 Therefore, it is probable that the particular medical works in question here were assembled in a like manner to his dictionary on the use of words in the comedies. That is they were assemblages from previous medical works rather than a result of his own researches, and as was observed earlier, Galen says that he did not like to claim research that was not entirely his own.22 Thus it is reasonable to give Galen the benefit of the doubt on this occasion as to the facts behind the statement, however in his use of this material in this way Galen is coming perilously close to doing and therefore becoming one of the objects of his distain- the sophist: µNow if Zeno was aware of this fraud and made use of it intentionally, he would be a sophist, not a philosopher.¶23
18 Swain (1996) 366 f. 19Praen. K14.604. 20Opt.Med.Cogn. 9.2 = Iskandar (1988) 101. 21Lib.Prop. K19.17; AA K2.217. 22 See section 2.6. 23PHP II.5.49.2 tr. DeLacy (1981) 137.
9.3.2 Intellectual honesty
Under my father¶s training I developed the habit of scorn for honour and reputation, and of respect for the truth alone.24
Galen¶s fundamental use of µsophist¶ is to describe a person who either deliberately distorted the facts or chose not to do the necessary work to discover them or, more generally, as a term of distain. In this he was following standard usage.25
A sophist will begin to seek impure things « whereas a doctor will set his heart on knowing.26
« a sophist having no intercourse with the hard works of skill.27
Of these the physician who is both highly skilled and truthful is esteemed, « whereas, a sophist squanders both his own time and that of his pupils in quarrels over names and what they mean.28
His distaste for any kind of intellectual activity which did not grapple with real problems was of long standing for he tells us that when he was a teenager that he heard a sophist arguing the probl»mata that an ostrich was sometimes a bird and sometimes not.29 However he does not show quite the same kind of antipathy to the few professional sophists that he mentions. One was his patient Pausanius the sophist from Syria, and another was the µeminent sophist¶ who had challenged some
24Aff.Dig. K5.43 tr. Singer (1997) 120. 25 Stanton (1973) 350ff.; Swain (1996) 99. 26Hipp.Epid. K17b.82. 27HNH K15.159. 28Hipp.Epid. K17a.231. 29Alim.Fac. K6.702.
CHAPTER 9:THE PHILOSOPHIC LIFE
158 of his refutations of Chrysippus. These men were of a kind that to some little degree he approved:
But to assert without proof, as Chrysippus did «. is so unbecoming to a philosopher that even rhetoricians and sophists do not do it; even they try to uses some plausible arguments.30
9.3.3 Repudiation of the salutatio
One serious consequence of Galen¶s determination to live out his philosophical principles was his repudiation of the salutatio. This decision appears to have come as result of his devotion to the precepts contained in Pythagoras¶ Golden Verses. For although the work itself only asks for one careful introspective assessment of one¶s behaviour at the end of the day¶s activities, Galen had recommended that this be done twice.31 The business of the daily salutation would have seriously
interfered with this kind of a contemplative start and finish to the day. Secondly, it is probable that he saw the need to follow around after a patron as essentially as sign of bondage: µHe was one of those slaves who run alongside their masters in the streets.¶32 This was a situation which would seem to clash heavily with his self-
image as an independent free citizen of Pergamum: µI shall leave this great and populous city for that small town where we all know one another, our parentage, our education, wealth and way of life.¶33
However, beyond this very personal lifestyle choice Galen also seems to have had some serious professional reasons for his general dislike of the custom for he makes
30PHP III.2.8 tr. DeLacy (1981) 177. 31Aff.Dig. K5.24.
32Sim.Morb. K19.4 tr. Brock (1929) 226. 33Praen. K14.624 tr. Nutton (1979) 93.
the following comment about doctors who take part in these activities:-
« it is for these reasons, they say, that people are respected, cultivated, and considered to be skilful practitioners, not as a result of any
particular ability they might have.34
They were by their activities undermining the status and tenuous social position that he as a thoroughly educated and professional physician was trying to develop.
9.4 Advocating the philosophic life