SOCRATES

(469 to 399 BC)

Socrates: An Overview

His Life and Works

His Major Ideas

His Legacy

SOCRATES: AN OVERVIEW

Socrates is known largely through Plato's heroized representation of him.

Objective reality and what our minds understand of reality are separated by a great mental divide (the general consensus of Greek philosophy by that time). But rational inquiry, meticulously but humbly pursued (his dialectical method), could close this divide. In using rational methods of inquiry, human mind and soul could be brought to discover transcendent (thus absolute) truth and goodness--and personal happiness.

Socrates felt optimistically that knowing the truly good would necessarily direct a person to act in line with this knowledge. Also, the quest for such knowledge was the very heart of life itself--its highest form (almost a divine enterprise).

Unfortunately, the Athenians proved not to be so enlightened by the truth as he had hoped, and ordered him to poison himself for "teaching the youth not to reverence the gods."

HIS LIFE AND WORKS

(This section was written in the 5th grade by Rachel Hodges):

Early Life

Socrates was born into a wealthy family in Athens between 471 and 469 B.C. His Father Sophroniscus was a professional sculptor. In Greece sculpture was one of the three main arts. Therefore Socrates’s father was well paid. During his childhood Socrates had the ambition of becoming a sculptor like his father. Socrates was believed to have actually put together a few sculptures called the “Graces” that are located along the road to the Acropolis. Socrates soon left his job as a sculptor to take up the job we know him for, a philosopher (meaning lover of wisdom).

The Teacher

Socrates would ask his students questions that involved lots of thinking (the dialectic method). When a student would come up with an answer, Socrates would come at him with a “what if” question causing them to think again harder. Socrates would keep this up until he thought his students knew exactly why they wanted to do a specific thing. Socrates thought that everyone needed a clear reason to go with their idea. He thought that you needed to think everything through before you acted or else everything would turn out all wrong, not the way you wanted it.

Socrates also thought that you need to stand firm on your idea even if everybody disagrees. He said never to go with the crowd because you’re going to end up not knowing what you’re doing. He disagreed strongly with the Sophists whose whole idea was to flatter and go along with the crowd and whatever they said went.

Socrates and His Understanding of God

An interesting thing about Socrates was that his religious thoughts were very different from basically about everybody during that time. While the Greeks were busy worrying about pleasing some petty gods running around on top of Mount Olympus, Socrates was focused on the idea of a much greater and perfect God that created everything and that watched over all of us. He thought that there was a higher and greater God than that of the pagan Greek gods. Socrates would make fun of the Greek gods through the Iliad and the Odessy. He would read sections of them to his students, talking about their jealousy and pride. Socrates would wonder how people actually believe them to be gods as imperfect as they were. To Socrates they were just immortal humans with magical powers. Even though Socrates was about 400 years before Christ, some people think Socrates would have agreed with the Christians and maybe perhaps would have been a Christian himself.

Socrates' Personality

Socrates had an attitude to go along with his face. He was portrayed in paintings and sculptures as having an ugly and tough looking face. Socrates had a tough personality. In fact he served in the army for several years. He was thought to be a tough, well trained soldier that was loyal to his army. He also had a wife named Xanthippe who was supposed to be easily upset and temper filled.

Socrates also had a very strong will. When he made up his mind nobody could stop him. Socrates would let everyone know his opinions and would let everyone know whether they were right or wrong. Socrates was not afraid of other people and their opinions. He expressed his opinions whenever he wanted to. He kept this up even when he was threatened with death. The reason for that might have been that he kept thinking of “the higher world” and somehow knew that all imperfection would cease to exist for him when he died. Therefore he was never afraid, not even of death.

Socrates' Works -- as Recorded by Plato

Although Socrates never wrote anything of his own, we did manage to come to know and understand Socrates’s thoughts and methods through some dialogs recorded mostly by his follower and disciple Plato. We can’t exactly be sure that these are all of Socrates’s words. Actually it is very likely that Plato was changing some of his words, or putting words in Socrates’s mouth. Probably the closest record of Socrates’s actual words was his farewell speech given while he was in court called The Apology. We think this is how Plato got his idea of the perfect (revealed, higher) world of pure forms or ideals, and his idea of us on earth being in the mirrored or shadowed (empirical) world.

His Trial and Death

Probably, the most important time in Socrates’s life was his death. I know that sounds a bit weird but this is the period in Socrates’s life that really shows you his understandings of things. This is the time that all in all explains who Socrates was from the inside of not only his thoughts but of his soul.

In 399 B.C., Socrates was tried in court. He was accused of the following: “Socrates is guilty, firstly, of denying the gods recognized by the state and introducing new divinities, and, secondly, of corrupting the young.”

This court scene is described in The Apology, a document recorded by Plato.

Even though Socrates could have played along with the people and saved his life, Socrates refused and even mocked some people saying to them whatever was on his mind, as if he had absolutely no care about this life or death situation (which he didn’t of course). Socrates was given several chances to change his mind (supposedly) and go on living his life. Even some of his closest disciples pleaded with him to change his mind. But nothing could stop the strong willed Socrates from doing what he thought was right. He thought there was no point in lying and that he would rather die and go to the life of eternal peace than give up his methods and thoughts to a bunch of dishonest, prideful, self centered, aristocratic, Sophists.

As a result, Socrates was condemned to death then thrown into prison. Socrates remained in prison for a number of days. Then, on the evening he was to die, Socrates’s friends and family gathered around him to say farewell. It was in their presence that Socrates drank the hemlock poison and died.

HIS MAJOR IDEAS

HIS LEGACY

(This section was written by Rachel Hodges):

Not Afraid of Death

To me one of the many ways Socrates was important was that he somehow wasn’t afraid of death. He knew that in the end there was something better that we could all look forward to if we believe in that higher God (revealed to us through Christ Jesus).

His Search for Truth

Socrates also taught us to stand for our selves, that we should not be ashamed of seeking the truth and that others’ opinions don’t matter just as long as we know what we’re doing, why we’re doing it, and we know it’s the right thing to do. He taught us to live up not to other peoples expectations but instead to our own desire to find that which is true, good, perfect the things that point to God.

His Christ-Like Ways

To me he is one the best role models you can possibly find. In a way Socrates was a lot like Christ. He thought that once you find the truth (God) you give up everything you have to follow it, no matter what the circumstances. He reminded me that we need to keep on believing and to do our best to show others the way to perfection–a way that we learned later is offered only through Christ Jesus.

This was Socrates’s decision to keep on believing, to hold on to his idea, his vision, even if the penalty meant death.

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