Abstract

The paper compares Heraclitus’ and Democritus’ opinions on the notion of wakefulness. Its aim is threefold. First of all, it aims to demonstrate that the fragments of both philosophers distinguish between two kinds of wakefulness: physical wakefulness, i.e. the bodily state which all men are in when they are not asleep, and "intellectual" waking, conceived as a form of superior rational consciousness which human bings do not normally possess. The second aim of the paper is to prove that Heraclitus and Democritus share the idea that "intellectual" wakefulness has notable existential and ethical implications. For example, it divides humanity into two classes: the class of wise men, who have the right understanding of reality, and that of fools, who live their entire lives like dull sleepwalkers. The third and final aim consists instead in illutraing the main differences between the two Presocratic philosophers, as well as highlighting some important connections between the doctrine of waking and their ontology, epistemology and political thought.