Carneades

Carneades was a Greek philosopher born around 214–3 BC in Cyrene. He became an important leader of the Skeptical Academy in Ancient Greece. Carneades challenged many old ideas and questioned whether we can really know what is true.

In 155 BC, Carneades was one of three philosophers sent to Rome. His talks about justice made some leaders worried because he talked about how hard it is to know for sure what is right. Carneades did not write any books himself, but his ideas were passed down by his student Clitomachus and later written about by Cicero and Sextus Empiricus.

Carneades believed we might not be able to know absolute truth, but we can still find ideas that seem very likely and helpful for everyday life. His ideas helped people deal with uncertainty in practical ways.

Biography

Carneades was born in Cyrene in North Africa around 214/213 BC. He later moved to Athens where he studied under the Stoics. He learned from Diogenes of Babylon and the works of Chrysippus.

He became the leader of the Platonic Academy after the death of Hegesinus of Pergamon.

In 155 BC, Carneades traveled to Rome as an ambassador. He gave speeches about justice. One day, he praised Roman justice, but the next day, he said justice could be tricky. This surprised many people in Rome.

Carneades kept leading the Academy in Athens until he died around 129/128 BC at the age of 85. He was known for working hard and loving to learn.

Philosophy

Carneades was an Academic Skeptic. This means he believed we cannot really know much.

Carneades taught that we cannot be sure if what we think, feel, or sense is the real truth. He said even our strongest feelings and thoughts can sometimes be wrong. But, we still need ways to live our lives. So, he suggested we trust what feels most true and what many of our thoughts agree on, even if we cannot be completely certain.