ABSTRACT
A scrutiny of the ancient Greek philosophers from the Classical and the Hellenistic Periods reveals how meaningful the topic of poverty is for them and the varied range of their positions. The latter consider wealth and poverty neither good nor bad, but indifferent, as they neither contribute to – nor detract from – happiness. The metaphysical dimension of truth consists of examining what being is in itself, and how its discourse is like. However, the poor have also been considered the individuals most able to think and speak the truth, precisely because nothing can affect them, at least as long as their poverty is the result of the conscious choice of refusing wealth. Poverty is relative in relation to both wealth and, like wealth itself, with the material and economic conditions of a given society. The Greeks understood philosophy to be a highly demanding activity.
