Publication Details

Abstract

The paper asks whether Euclid of Megara is a typical Socratic who examines the good life or a Megarian who combines Socratic ethics with the Eleatic doctrine. Firstly, the author analyzes the testimonies by Diogenes Laertius, Aristocles, and Cicero that identify Euclid as the founder of the Megarian line (part 1 – 4). The analyses result in an ambiguous assessment of Euclid as an Eleatic Socratic, which seems to have originated in the Hellenistic doxographies. Then the author returns to the theme of Megarian school and shows that within the Megarian movement we should consider several lines, and only the latest line of Dialecticians could be called a school (part 5). Finally, the author reviews the extant testimonies for Euclid (part 6). It shows that, with few exceptions, Euclid is portrayed in ancient accounts as a Socratic with an interest in ethical problems. The only direct fragment cited by Stobaeus does not suggest any connection with Eleatic doctrine.