Aristippus of Cyrene
Ancient Greek · Africa · 435 to 356 BCE
Greek thinker from Cyrene and follower of Socrates who taught that the good life is a life of pleasure.
What it is
Aristippus of Cyrene was a Greek thinker who lived from about 435 to about 356 BCE. He came from Cyrene, a Greek colony on the coast of what is now Libya, and he became a follower of Socrates and the founder of the Cyrenaic school, which taught that pleasure is the highest good.
He is remembered less for a book, since none of his writings survive, than for a way of living and a few sayings. Because his thought reaches us through others, and because the school was carried on by his family, it is sometimes hard to tell his own words from those of his successors.
The main ideas
- Pleasure is the good. Of all the things people value, pleasure ranks highest and pain lowest, and pain is to be avoided. This view is called ethical hedonism.
- Enjoy without being ruled. He is credited with the saying "I possess, I am not possessed." The idea is that one may enjoy what one has, but should keep judgement and self-control and not become the servant of it.
- Philosophy for pay. He was the first of Socrates's followers to ask a fee for teaching.
- A teaching handed on. He taught his daughter Arete, who taught her own son, Aristippus the Younger. The younger man is said to have turned the teaching into a system.
What it looks like in practice
Imagine someone offered a fine meal at the end of a long week. Aristippus would say to enjoy it fully and without guilt, but to keep their head, so that the meal serves them and they do not serve the meal. This is an illustration of the sayings credited to him, not a passage from his writing.
Books and moments
- None of his writings survive, so everything we know about him comes from later accounts.
- The motto. "I possess, I am not possessed" is the saying most often linked to him.
- The school. His daughter and grandson made the Cyrenaic school into a system.
Questions and criticism
- How restrained was he? Some accounts stress judgement and self-control. Another describes the Cyrenaics as chasing present pleasure with little thought for later. It is fair to ask which picture fits the founder and which fits the school after him.
- Who is speaking? Aristippus and his grandson of the same name were sometimes mixed up, so a view credited to one may belong to the other.
- Is pleasure enough? It is fair to ask whether a life aimed at pleasure can be good in other ways, and how it should deal with pain that cannot be avoided.
Close neighbours
Socrates, whose page is on this site, was his teacher.
Written by epchē in our own words, and checked against independent sources on 29 October 2026. The sources are listed below.
Who they connect to
Influenced
- Epicurus · Epicurus also made pleasure the aim of life, though he valued calm above the pleasure of the moment.
Influenced by
- Socrates · He came to Athens to hear Socrates and became his follower.
Other Ancient Greek thinkers
- Thales of Miletus · 624 to 546 BCE
- Anaximander · 610 to 546 BCE
- Anaximenes · 586 to 526 BCE
- Pythagoras · 570 to 495 BCE
- Xenophanes · 570 to 475 BCE
- Heraclitus · 535 to 475 BCE
- Parmenides · 515 to 450 BCE
- Anaxagoras · 500 to 428 BCE
- Empedocles · 494 to 434 BCE
- Zeno of Elea · 490 to 430 BCE
Sources we used
- The Cyrenaics · Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy, read on 29 October 2026
- Aristippus · Encyclopaedia Britannica, read on 29 October 2026
- Aristippus · Wikipedia, read on 29 October 2026