学术资讯｜全球正义讲座第37讲：古代犬儒主义的幽默和无耻

In this paper I explore the particular brand of shamelessness of the ancient Cynics and, in particular, its connection to the use of humor as a tool for sociopolitical expression. The Cynics famously enjoyed saying and doing shocking shameless things both to make people reassess their unexamined beliefs. I show that they used the inversion of the structures of shame through humor and provocation as a crucial strategy for changing problematic mainstream thought and for getting rid of those social norms, beliefs, and behaviors that they took to be obstacles to the good life. More specifically, through an analysis of texts from Diogenes Laertius and Epictetus, I explain how the ancient Cynics bring about a robust transvaluation of social values through a kind of humor that inverts the structures of shame, makes people uncomfortable, and turns social norms upside down by challenging the rules of respectability. I argue that the Cynics make this transvaluation possible by consistently inhabiting shamelessness as a way of life, cultivating the strength to resist social pressures, and taking every opportunity to try to make shamelessness contagious through cleverly targeted humor and ridicule. 

在本文中，我探索了古代犬儒主义者特有的“无耻”，尤其是，它与将幽默用作社会政治表达工具之间的联系。 众所周知，犬儒主义者喜欢说和做一些令人震惊的无耻的事情，而这两者使人们重新评估他们的未经检验的信念。 我将展示，为了改变有问题的主流思想，以及摆脱这些在他们看来是好生活之阻碍的社会规范、信念和行为，他们会通过幽默和挑衅对羞耻结构进行颠倒，以此作为实现以上目的的关键策略。 更具体地说，通过对第欧根尼·拉尔修（Diogenes Laertius）和爱比克泰德（Epictetus）的文本的分析，我解释了古代犬儒主义者如何通过一种颠倒了羞耻之结构的幽默，使人感到不舒服，并通过挑战得体的规则将社会规范颠倒过来，从而对社会价值进行强有力重估。 我将论证，犬儒主义者通过一贯地“践行”无耻并使之成为一种生活方式，培养对抗社会压力的力量，以及通过有针对性的幽默和嘲笑，来把握每一个传播无耻的机会，从而使这种价值重估成为可能。