Corinth and Acrocorinth

Richard Stoneman in Legends of Alexander the Great:
A Cynic background is present in the famous story of Alexander’s encounter with Diogenes at Corinth. Diogenes
was the effective founder of the Cynic school and was famed throughout antiquity for his rejection of convention, evinced in his choosing to live in a barrel and his practice of defecation and masturbation in public (like a dog, hence the name ‘cynic’). The story goes that Alexander met Diogenes and was so impressed by his wisdom that he offered him a gift; and Diogenes simply asked Alexander ‘Please stand out of my sunshine’. The philosopher content with the bare minimum of natural pleasure is contrasted with the world conqueror for whom no acquisition was sufficient.