Diogenes Laërtius · fl. 3rd century CE
Lives of Eminent Philosophers 7.31 — Diogenes Laërtius on Zeno
Translation by R. D. Hicks (1925)
Diogenes Laërtius, Lives of Eminent Philosophers 7.31
Reported speech · Diogenes Laërtius on Zeno
We have ourselves mentioned the manner of Zeno’s death in the Pammetros (a collection of poems in various metres): The story goes that Zeno of Citium after enduring many hardships by reason of old age was set free, some say by ceasing to take food; others say that once when he had tripped he beat with his hand upon the earth and cried, “I come of my own accord; why then call me?” For there are some who hold this to have been the manner of his death. So much then concerning his death. Demetrius the Magnesian, in his work on Men of the Same Name, says of him: his father, Mnaseas, being a merchant often went to Athens and brought away many books about Socrates for Zeno while still a boy.
Cite this passage
Diogenes Laërtius, Lives of Eminent Philosophers 7.31 (on Zeno), tr. R. D. Hicks (1925)
https://whatwouldstoicsdo.com/passage/lives-of-the-stoics/7.31
Diogenes Laërtius, Lives of Eminent Philosophers, Book VII, tr. R. D. Hicks (Loeb, 1925). Text: Perseus Digital Library (CC BY-SA 4.0). Sources and licences
In plain English
AI-written notesGives two other accounts of how Zeno died, either by ceasing to eat or by tripping and answering death's call as if he came willingly, then turns to a note about his father, a merchant who brought him books on Socrates as a boy.
Older wording
- “Pammetros”
- — a collection of poems in various metres
Themes and situations
- Death and mortality
- Ageing
- Acceptance and fate