5 Funny Anecdotes From Important Philosophers

Aristotle, a disciple of Plato, who in turn had been a disciple of Socrates, was a Greek thinker capable of postulating more than 2000 years ago that “laughter is a valuable exercise for health.” It is not surprising that many of the great philosophers in human history have had an excellent sense of humor.

Next we are going to know some of the most sympathetic anecdotes in which the protagonist is one of the philosophers who have marked the modern world. Voltaire, Russell, Socrates, Diogenes or Newton are names that you surely know. However, you may not be aware of his enormous sense of humor.

Diogenes and meal times

The absolute contempt that Diogenes of Sinope felt towards social conventions is quite famous. In his time he was a man capable of navigating against the current in all kinds of situations. So much so that he was even living inside a barrel.

However, there is no greater example of total disregard for social conventions than that shown by Diogenes to his disciples when they asked him the exact time a person should be eating.

With great humor and no little irony, Diogenes replied: “It depends, if you are rich you can eat whenever you want. If you are poor, whenever you can ”. It is evident that this famous Greek philosopher had a sense of humor equal to his reluctance to follow the social stream.

It is curious, but this anecdote that Diógenes starred more than 2000 years ago could perfectly occur today and no one would surprise anyone. Does this mean that we have not evolved anything in all this time …?

Bertrand Russell and the women

Bertrand Russell, one of the most brilliant philosophers of his time, was famous for his mathematical theories and for his vision of the world around him. One day Bertrand Russell was invited by a conservative women’s club to present his political ideas during a conference.

During the speech, Russell exposed his leftist theories with total freedom, not being to the liking of the ladies attending, who began to throw whatever fell into their hands.

Faced with the unfortunate incident, a guard tried to put peace by shouting “He’s a great mathematician!” or “he’s a great philosopher!” with very little success. However, in despair, the well-meaning guard cried out “his brother is a count!”, A fact that was able to appease the disturbed audience.

Die with your ideas clear or adapt your speech to the environment? A complex question that confronts the courage of the human being with the instinct for adaptation and survival. There is no doubt that Russell opted for the first option and it did not go well, but he found the solidarity of another person, or did the guard do it out of simple obligation?

Voltaire and religion

Voltaire was one of the most important philosophers and thinkers of enlightened France. However, his animosity towards religion and a certain contempt for all kinds of related manifestations is well known.

One day Voltaire was walking with a friend and they came across a procession led by a crucified Christ. The French philosopher took off his hat to the astonishment of his companion. He asked with surprise: “I thought you were incredulous in matters of religion.” The enlightened thinker replied in a humorous tone: ” And I am, although Christ and I greet each other, but we do not speak. “

Religion in human societies is as old as civilization itself. Now, is it an obligatory evil? Was it born out of the need to explain phenomena such as drought, flood or epidemics, because of the scientific inability of the time? Is it a form of crowd control? There are many questions and few answers.

Socrates and education

The popular Greek philosopher Socrates was known to be a great advocate of education, among many other subjects in which Plato’s teacher was very adept. So much so that he had a comical encounter with a wealthy father of the time.

A wealthy Athenian wanted to entrust Socrates with the education of his son. For this work, the philosopher asked him for 500 drachmas, an amount that seemed excessive to his employer, so he told him: “For that money I can buy a donkey.” The thinker’s response was no less ingenious: “He’s right. I advise you to buy it and then you will have two ”.

In reality, education should be priceless. An enlightened person finds essential weapons to understand the world and navigate the social tangles of yesterday, today and forever. Let’s not think of Socrates as a miser, but as an enlightened man of his time.

Isaac Newton and the politicians

Many people think that politicians are a necessary evil whose role has lost value throughout history. However, Isaac Newton already had to say something similar when he was elected representative of the University of Cambridge in the British Parliament.

During four years in office, from 1687 to 1690, Isaac Newton only asked to speak once. His intervention was: “I propose to close that window because it is quite cold here.” A genius only at the height of a great mind like his.

Is it possible that political verbiage was as boring and pointless more than 300 years ago as it is today? How would Isaac Newton act in a current parliament? What would other philosophers do? Unfortunately, it is easy to think that their attitude would not differ at all … Or maybe yes, perhaps in the current congresses they were not cold, because they are better acclimatized.

As you can see, the great philosophers in the history of mankind did not lack a sense of humor and wit. So you know, laughter is a common good that no one can take away from us. It is good not to lose sympathy and grace, as it greatly facilitates the passage through good and bad times.