Biography (469-399 B.C.E)

• Lived during the Golden Age of Athens—the foundation of Western culture. Died 10 years after Confucius.
  • Little is known about his early life, but Socrates was widely known to be dissatisfied with the knowledge he acquired from other teachers—led to the development of his own method of education.
  • “Therefore I am still even now going about and searching and investigating at the god's behest anyone, whether citizen or foreigner, who I think is wise; when he does not seem so to me, I help the god by showing that he is not wise. And by reason of this occupation I have no leisure to attend to any of the affairs of the state worth mentioning, or of my own, but am incessantly in poverty due to my service to the god.”
• Socrates was ultimately tried by the city of Athens for corrupting the youth.
  • Socrates is guilty of not believing in the gods in which the state believes, but brings in other new divinities; he also wrongs by corrupting the youth."
  • Socrates’ trial was before a group of 501 jurors—and he was condemned by 80 votes. When the decision of sentencing was raised, Socrates suggested that the city pay for his meals, and then that he pay a fine that was the equivalent of one dollar. They chose to put him to death, largely because he antagonized them.
• One of the most significant Western Philosophers—the world of philosophy is often divided between Socratic and pre-Socratic thought.

The Philosophy of Socrates

• Virtue=Knowledge. Socrates believed that no one did wrong willingly and that those who do wrong do it out of ignorance of what was the right thing to do.
• Moral Scale. Socrates had established a sort of moral scale by which to measure the inherent good of things. At the bottom of this scale was external good; money, possessions and material wealth. Near the middle of the scale was the good of the body; health, strength, and the like. At the top of the scale was the good of the soul; wisdom and moral integrity. Accepting this scale to be true leads to the idea that it is better to suffer an injustice, even if it results in the loss of your possessions or even your life, than to commit an injustice.
• Self Education. The only true wisdom and knowledge comes from self-education and self-discovery.
• Study of Human Nature. Socrates marks the transition from philosophy as a study of the universe to a study of human nature.

The Socratic Method

• Socrates used a teaching device called the elenchus, which is close in meaning to cross-examination. Truth is discovered in conflict of ideas and the answers ones gives to questions.
• Leads to the development of the dialectic, the idea that wisdom is generated through conflict of ideas—that a thesis and antithesis in conflict will generate synthesis, or wisdom.