Diogenes
Diogenes of Sinope
In the most famous exchange of the meeting, Alexander The Great asked Diogenes whether there was anything he could do for him. Diogenes, who was enjoying the warmth of the autumn sun, answered, “Stand aside to stop blocking the sun.” This abrupt response, showing his utter contempt for the power and prestige that Alexander craved, spawned the large number of artistic renderings that followed.
Although Alexander’s attendants took umbrage at Diogenes’ rudeness to their king, Alexander himself was not displeased. Leaving, he is said to have remarked, “If I were not Alexander, I would want to be Diogenes.”
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