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Socrates: the story on HearLore | HearLore
Socrates
Socrates was born in 470 or 469 BC to Sophroniscus, a stoneworker, and Phaenarete, a midwife, in the Athenian deme of Alopece. He was an Athenian citizen born to relatively affluent parents, yet he chose a life of radical indifference to material comfort. He neglected personal hygiene, bathed rarely, walked barefoot, and owned only a single ragged coat. His physical appearance was notoriously unattractive, featuring a flat turned-up nose, bulging eyes, and a large belly, traits that friends often joked about. Despite his lack of conventional beauty, he attracted great interest from the Athenian public and especially the youth. He was married twice, though the order of these marriages remains unclear, with his marriage to Xanthippe occurring when he was in his fifties. He had three sons with Xanthippe and another marriage to a daughter of Aristides, an Athenian statesman. Socrates fulfilled his military service during the Peloponnesian War, distinguishing himself in three campaigns, including the Battle of Potidaea where he saved the life of Alcibiades. He lived close to his father's relatives and inherited part of his father's estate, securing a life reasonably free of financial concerns, yet he chose to spend his time conversing with citizens, among them powerful members of Athenian society, scrutinizing their beliefs and bringing the contradictions of their ideas to light.
The Voice Within
In several texts, including Plato's Euthyphro and Apology, Socrates claims he hears a daimonic sign, an inner voice heard usually when he was about to make a mistake. He gave a brief description of this daimonion at his trial, stating that it started in his childhood and always deterred him from the course of action he was intending to engage in, but it never gave him positive advice. This divine sign opposed his practicing politics, which he thought was absolutely fine. Modern scholarship has variously interpreted this Socratic daimonion as a rational source of knowledge, an impulse, a dream, or even a paranormal experience felt by an ascetic Socrates. Socrates argued that the gods were inherently wise and just, a perception far from traditional religion at that time. In Euthyphro, the Euthyphro dilemma arises, questioning the relationship between piety and the will of a powerful god. Socrates considered sacrifices to the gods to be useless, especially when they were driven by the hope of receiving a reward in return. Instead, he called for philosophy and the pursuit of knowledge to be the principal way of worshipping the gods. His rejection of traditional forms of piety, connecting them to self-interest, implied that Athenians should seek religious experience by self-examination. He affirmed a belief in gods in Plato's Apology, where he says to the jurors that he acknowledges gods more than his accusers, yet he also believed in oracles, divinations, and other messages from gods, which were predictions of unfavorable future events.
Socrates was born in 470 or 469 BC in the Athenian deme of Alopece. He lived in Athens as an Athenian citizen and spent his life there until his death.
What were the charges against Socrates in 399 BC?
Socrates was formally accused in 399 BC of corrupting the minds of the youth of Athens and of asebeia, which means impiety or worshipping false gods. The accusations were brought by the poet Meletus along with Anytus and Lycon.
How did Socrates die and what were his last words?
Socrates died in 399 BC after drinking poison hemlock in prison. His last words were Crito, we owe a rooster to Asclepius. Don't forget to pay the debt.
What is the Socratic method and how does it work?
The Socratic method, also known as elenchus, is a method of refutation where Socrates asks questions to prove an expert's beliefs contradictory. He initiates a dialogue by asking for a definition and continues questioning until the interlocutor reveals their ignorance.
Why did Athenians convict Socrates of impiety and corruption?
Scholars debate whether Athenians convicted Socrates for religious reasons, political reasons, or a combination of both. The religious argument focuses on his impiety charges, while the political argument suggests he was a threat to democracy due to his pupils and views.
Who were the immediate followers of Socrates and what schools did they found?
Immediate followers of Socrates included Euclid of Megara, Aristippus, and Antisthenes. Euclid founded the Megarians school, Aristippus founded the Cyrenaic school based on hedonism, and Antisthenes influenced the Cynics.
In 399 BC, Socrates was formally accused of corrupting the minds of the youth of Athens and for asebeia, or impiety, meaning worshipping false gods and failing to worship the gods of Athens. The accusations were initiated by a poet, Meletus, who asked for the death penalty, with other accusers being Anytus and Lycon. At the trial, Socrates defended himself unsuccessfully, found guilty by a majority vote cast by a jury of hundreds of male Athenian citizens. He was sentenced to death after a trial that lasted a day. Socrates was given the chance to offer alternative punishments for himself after being found guilty. He could have requested permission to flee Athens and live in exile, but he did not do so. According to Xenophon, Socrates made no proposals, while according to Plato he suggested free meals should be provided for him daily in recognition of his worth to Athens or, more in earnest, that a fine should be imposed on him. The jurors favored the death penalty by making him drink a cup of hemlock, a poisonous liquid. Socrates spent his last day in prison among friends and followers who offered him a route to escape, which he declined. He died the next morning, in accordance with his sentence, after drinking poison hemlock. According to the Phaedo, his last words were: Crito, we owe a rooster to Asclepius. Don't forget to pay the debt. The question of what motivated Athenians to convict Socrates remains controversial among scholars, with theories ranging from religious persecution to political reasons, or a synthesis of both.
The Method of Questioning
A fundamental characteristic of Plato's Socrates is the Socratic method, or the method of refutation known as elenchus. It is most prominent in the early works of Plato, such as Apology, Crito, Gorgias, and Republic I. The typical elenchus proceeds as follows: Socrates initiates a discussion about a topic with a supposed expert on the subject, usually in the company of some young men and boys, and by dialogue proves the expert's beliefs and arguments to be contradictory. Socrates initiates the dialogue by asking his interlocutor for a definition of the subject. As he asks more questions, the interlocutor's answers eventually contradict the first definition. The conclusion is that the expert did not really know the definition in the first place. The interlocutor may come up with a different definition. That new definition, in turn, comes under the scrutiny of Socratic questioning. With each round of question and answer, Socrates and his interlocutor hope to approach the truth. More often, they continue to reveal their ignorance. Since the interlocutors' definitions most commonly represent the mainstream opinion on a matter, the discussion places doubt on the common opinion. Socrates also tests his own opinions through the Socratic method. Thus Socrates does not teach a fixed philosophical doctrine. Rather, he acknowledges his own ignorance while searching for truth with his pupils and interlocutors. Scholars have questioned the validity and the exact nature of the Socratic method, or indeed if there even was a Socratic method, with Gregory Vlastos claiming that the Socratic method could not be used to establish the truth or falsehood of a proposition.
The Unity of Virtue
Socrates's theory of virtue states that all virtues are essentially one, since they are a form of knowledge. For Socrates, the reason a person is not good is because they lack knowledge. Since knowledge is united, virtues are united as well. Another famous dictum, no one errs willingly, also derives from this theory. In Protagoras, Socrates argues for the unity of virtues using the example of courage: if someone knows what the relevant danger is, they can undertake a risk. Aristotle comments that Socrates the elder thought that the end of life was knowledge of virtue, and he used to seek for the definition of justice, courage, and each of the parts of virtue. Moral intellectualism refers to the prominent role Socrates gave to knowledge. He believed that all virtue was based on knowledge, hence Socrates is characterized as a virtue intellectualist. He also believed that humans were guided by the cognitive power to comprehend what they desire, while diminishing the role of impulses, a view termed motivational intellectualism. In Plato's Protagoras, Socrates implies that no one errs willingly, which has become the hallmark of Socratic virtue intellectualism. In Socratic moral philosophy, priority is given to the intellect as being the way to live a good life, and Socrates deemphasizes irrational beliefs or passions. Scholars have been puzzled by Socrates's view that akrasia, acting because of one's irrational passions, contrary to one's knowledge or beliefs, is impossible. Most believe that Socrates left no space for irrational desires, although some claim that Socrates acknowledged the existence of irrational motivations, but denied they play a primary role in decision-making.
The Irony of Ignorance
There is a widespread assumption that Socrates was an ironist, mostly based on the depiction of Socrates by Plato and Aristotle. Socrates's irony is so subtle and slightly humorous that it often leaves the reader wondering if Socrates is making an intentional pun. Plato's Euthyphro is filled with Socratic irony. The story begins when Socrates is meeting with Euthyphro, a man who has accused his own father of murder. When Socrates first hears the details of the story, he comments, It is not, I think, any random person who could do this correctly, but surely one who is already far progressed in wisdom. When Euthyphro boasts about his understanding of divinity, Socrates responds that it is most important that I become your student. Socrates is commonly seen as ironic when using praise to flatter or when addressing his interlocutors. Scholars are divided on why Socrates uses irony. According to an opinion advanced since the Hellenistic period, Socratic irony is a playful way to get the audience's attention. Another line of thought holds that Socrates conceals his philosophical message with irony, making it accessible only to those who can separate the parts of his statements which are ironic from those which are not. Gregory Vlastos has identified a more complex pattern of irony in Socrates. In Vlastos's view, Socrates's words have a double meaning, both ironic and not. One example is when he denies having knowledge. Vlastos suggests that Socrates is being ironic when he says he has no knowledge, while, according to another sense of knowledge, Socrates is serious when he says he has no knowledge of ethical matters. This opinion is not shared by many other scholars.
The Shadow of Death
Socrates died in Athens in 399 BC after a trial for impiety and the corruption of the young. He spent his last day in prison among friends and followers who offered him a route to escape, which he refused. He died the next morning, in accordance with his sentence, after drinking poison hemlock. According to the Phaedo, his last words were: Crito, we owe a rooster to Asclepius. Don't forget to pay the debt. The question of what motivated Athenians to convict Socrates remains controversial among scholars. There are two theories. The first is that Socrates was convicted on religious grounds; the second, that he was accused and convicted for political reasons. Another, more recent, interpretation synthesizes the religious and political theories, arguing that religion and state were not separate in ancient Athens. The argument for religious persecution is supported by the fact that Plato's and Xenophon's accounts of the trial mostly focus on the charges of impiety. In those accounts, Socrates is portrayed as making no effort to dispute the fact that he did not believe in the Athenian gods. Against this argument stands the fact that many skeptics and atheist philosophers during this time were not prosecuted. According to the argument for political persecution, Socrates was targeted because he was perceived as a threat to democracy. It was true that Socrates did not stand for democracy during the reign of the Thirty Tyrants and that most of his pupils were against the democrats. The case for it being a political persecution is usually challenged by the existence of an amnesty that was granted to Athenian citizens in 403 BC to prevent escalation to civil war after the fall of the Thirty. However, as the text from Socrates's trial and other texts reveal, the accusers could have fuelled their rhetoric using events prior to 403 BC.
The Enduring Echo
Socrates's impact was immense in philosophy after his death. With the exception of the Epicureans and the Pyrrhonists, almost all philosophical currents after Socrates traced their roots to him: Plato's Academy, Aristotle's Lyceum, the Cynics, and the Stoics. Interest in Socrates kept increasing until the third century AD. The various schools differed in response to fundamental questions such as the purpose of life or the nature of arete, since Socrates had not handed them an answer, and therefore, philosophical schools subsequently diverged greatly in their interpretation of his thought. He was considered to have shifted the focus of philosophy from a study of the natural world, as was the case for pre-Socratic philosophers, to a study of human affairs. Immediate followers of Socrates were his pupils, Euclid of Megara, Aristippus, and Antisthenes, who drew differing conclusions among themselves and followed independent trajectories. Antisthenes had a profound contempt of material goods. According to him, virtue was all that mattered. Diogenes and the Cynics continued this line of thought. On the opposite end, Aristippus endorsed the accumulation of wealth and lived a luxurious life. After leaving Athens and returning to his home city of Cyrene, he founded the Cyrenaic philosophical school which was based on hedonism, and endorsing living an easy life with physical pleasures. His school passed to his grandson, bearing the same name. There is a dialogue in Xenophon's work in which Aristippus claims he wants to live without wishing to rule or be ruled by others. In addition, Aristippus maintained a skeptical stance on epistemology, claiming that we can be certain only of our own feelings. This view resonates with the Socratic understanding of ignorance. Euclid was a contemporary of Socrates. After Socrates's trial and death, he left Athens for the nearby town of Megara, where he founded a school, named the Megarians. His theory was built on the pre-Socratic monism of Parmenides. Euclid continued Socrates's thought, focusing on the nature of virtue.