The Pivotal Theios Aner : (re)invented conservatism in Philostratus’ Life of Apollonius of Tyana
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2011
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Abstract
The eponymous hero of Philostratus’ first work, the Life of Apollonius of Tyana,
uses his status as a unique representative of perfected and divinely ordained Hellenic
philosophy on earth—that is, as the quintessential theios aner—to articulate and implement
Philostratus’ own ideal world order. This order was in some ways deeply conservative in its
vision of political, economic, social, and religious systems—a reflection of Philostratus’
status as an establishment elite figure—but equally radical in others—a reflection of the
counter-cultural philosophical tradition that Philostratus and his “Second Sophistic” milieu
were channeling. Philostratus successfully uses Apollonius as a pivot, or link, between the
heavenly and mortal realms. This enables the author to defend the infusion of ethical
philosophy from the former realm into the latter one as a fundamentally tradition-upholding
move. The changes that Apollonius effects are not new; rather, they represent a return to a
long-forgotten era of Hellenic philosophical purity. The effect of this “orthodox” infusion is
that ethical philosophy legitimizes and defends the established world order—political, socioeconomic,
and religious—insofar as the latter adjusts to meet the demands of the former.
When tensions between the two systems arise, Philostratus cleverly takes advantage of the
oscillating “active” and “marginal” nature of his theios aner to prevent a collision. The Life of
Apollonius of Tyana is a well-crafted, contingency-anticipating synthesis of Hellenic “culture”
and “counter-culture” that makes a valiant attempt to inject new life and new direction into
the author’s civilization.