The Philosophy of Law of the Epicureans

THE PHILOSOPHY OF LAW OF THE EPICUREANS GIANTISM in any organism or organization, whether biological or social, is always an indication of incipient decadence and decay. When the organism has developed to gigantic proportions, the next phase is its decline, and the ultimate phase its dissolution. There have been periods in the history of human civilization when affairs got out of hand because they had attained a bigness beyond the human possibility of efficient management and effective control. ·The ensuing result has been a gradually intensified arrest of the proper functioning of the established social, political, legal, economic, and moral order-followed usually by its complete breakdown. The Hellenistic era, when the greater portion of the civilized world had been incorporated into the autocratic and military empire or empires of Alexander and his successors, was just such a gigantic development. The hegemony u11.der the Roman Empire, when the law of the City of Rome became the law of the world, and when all political authority was centralized in Rome, or to be more exact, in the hands of one military autocrat , is another example of political giantism.1 Although the "frontiers of that extensive monarchy were guarded by ancient renown and disciplined valor," and "the image of a free constitution was preserved with decent reverence," 2 this gigantic world state, following the inexorable fate which seems to befall all man-made institutions which have grown to a size beyond the possibility of effective human management, soon began to decline and fall, " a revolution which will ever be remembered, and is still felt by the nations of the earth." 8 Eras of bigness and autocracy have always gone together. 1 R. Pound, "The Hun1anities in an Absolutist World," The Claaaical Journal !l9 (1948), no. 1, !l ff. • E. Gibbon, The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire 1. I. 1. 8 E. Gibbc:m, loc. cit. 82 THE PHILOSOPHY OF LAW OF THE EPICUREANS 83 It goes without saying that during these periods of gigantic military and autocratic empires, the predominant feature of legal and political thought among the educated and the refined is that of enforced "political quietism" or complete indifference and apathy. The wise man, fully aware of his impotence singly to make himself heard in this essentially aimless idolatry of mere bigness became like one who, in the driving storm . . . retires under the shelter of a wall; and seeing the rest of mankind full of wickedness he remains content if he only can live his own life and be pure from evil and unrighteousness. He will not partake in the wickedness of his fellow men, but neither is he capable singly of resisting all their fierce natures. And therefore, realizing that he is of no use to the state or to his fellow men, and reflecting that he would have to throw away his life without doing any good either to himself or to others, he holds his peace and goes his own way.4 The real point of intelligent existence, therefore, is to lead a selfishly quiet and unperturbed life. If he lived under a wise and humane despot, the philosopher seeking the happy life need not fear being disturbed and, hence, could pursue his own ideal of a serene existence, neither perturbed nor perturbable. If, on the other hand, the ruler was an evil and vicious tyrant, the philosopher could quietly fade into oblivion and so escape the tyrant's notice and persecution.5 This wholly negative attitude towards all political and social issues lead more and more to the general acceptance of a philosophy that taught quiet resignation to whatever the existing government was doing. At the same time, it created within man the naive but ·passive expectation that this omnipotent and apparently omniscent government should and would provide for all human needs by displaying a benevolent paternal solicitude. Instead of wanting to do the things by themselves, men gradually acquired the habit of having things done for them; they turned to the government to do what would be required for a shallowly happy and superficially contented life. But they themselves did not wish to be active in government. As a consequence, they re...