The first time I encountered this man, we call him the father of Western Philosophy, was when I was about twelve years old. I heard his name in my class when asking a teacher that why don’t we write “You” as just “U”. “Don’t be like Socrates. That’s how we write literature”. This was her answer. My relationship with this philosopher finally appeared when I got a chance to read the book of Plato, The Republic.
I find Socrates as one of the most influential figures in the history of philosophy. His methods of bringing an idea are not natural but beyond it. In this article, we will try to explore some of his methods and philosophy. Socrates did not write anything of his thoughts. Most of his teachings were written by his pupils and some by poets, and playwriters.
Early Life and Learning
Born in 469 BC, in a tribe called Antiochis, Socrates was the son of Sophroniscus. His father died when he was a child, and the young Socrates came in the guardianship of his mother, Phaenarete. Talking about Socrates and his childhood is quite difficult. As we know, there are hundreds of contradictions among the texts which describe Socrates and his personality. But according to some estimates, in his early life, Socrates was taught in the Athenian schools.
Because of some famous festivals Athens attracted many people from all around Greece. Socrates, at that time, was in his nineteens and used to discuss with the people and philosophers who visited Athens to join the famous festival of Panathenaic (citizens of Athens used to play and celebrate this festival like the Olympic games). Here we can find some sketches of how he developed his interest in philosophy. According to some resources, Socrates met some great philosophers like Zeno and Parmenides. But before explaining the Socratic methods and his philosophy, we must know about the Socratic problem. It emerged in the 17th and 18th centuries when scholars started exploring Socrates with some new methods and tools.
Socratic Problem
Why is it so difficult to find an accurate statement about this philosopher? Even in the books of Plato, who was one of Socrates’ closest disciples, we can find contradictions about his master’s personality. Until now, archaeologists and historians are working to find the facts that were long lost in the ashes of time. What we know today about Socrates are only those things written down by three people of his time. Aristotle also has written about Socrates, but we cannot consider it that authentic as what we find in the works of Plato, Aristophanes, and Xenophon. But still, these three individuals contradict each other.
Plato’s works are considered by the majority that it provides the actual image of Socrates. We can find in many of his books the central figure of Socrates. But here, another problem emerges. According to many historians and linguists, Plato uses the name and character of Socrates to explain his own philosophy. In other words, we can say about this Socrates as “Plato’s Socrates” (not the actual figure of Socrates).
Why shall we consider Socrates as the father of philosophy if only Plato is behind all those great dialogues? The simple answer to this question is because Socrates was Plato’s teacher. And he was the man who influenced so many people of his time that many among them started writing on his life and about his character.
Socrates, philosophy and Plato
In his books, Plato elucidates some of the life events of Socrates. Symposium, Crito, Meno, The Republic, and Apology are some of the works in which we can find the central-most figure of Socrates. Though Plato was not present at Socrates’ death, he has written about his mentor’s trial. The Apology of Plato is the book containing the incidents that took place with Socrates before his death and the most original work on this topic. We are not sure when this work of Plato was composed. But it seems many of its dialogues were written before the death of Socrates.
Know Thyself and Beyond
The most famous quote wrongly attributed to Socrates was “Knowing Thyself”. Now, what does that mean? We can say a human can know what he knows. And what he knows is that he knows that he knows nothing. This is how Socrates came to the conclusion that he knows nothing. But it seems ironic as we all know that we all know some things. And knowing something means that we know that thing. And knowing that thing means that we know that we know. But again, by asking questions about that thing, we can know how little we know what we know about that thing. So, it means we know that much, which falls in the category of nothing.
Socratic method and his teaching survive till this day. We will talk about his methods, later on, first, let’s see why he was considered the father of philosophy.
Socrates was the first original moral philosopher who tried to explain why not to do evil things to others and why ethics is the most essential thing in our lives.
The Socratic Method
One of the most important things Socrates discovered in his life is to question everything. By questioning, one can understand the meaning and reality of that element.
The other most important thing for Socrates was his discussions with the other Athenians. Discussion about a particular subject can give us an accurate picture of what society thinks about it and how it should be understood. Ethics, according to Socrates, is the one and the only thing that a human can comprehend. Then why only ethics? The question can be answered because it is related to our souls. Ethics is the only thing we can comprehend because it is related to our understanding of all things. This is a tool to know what is right and what is not valid. It is an instrument that explains how good life can be lived.
In his books, Plato describes Socrates that the thing which made him Socrates was his ethical teachings. None of the formulas, theorems, or mathematical equations was given by him. But still, he was considered the father of Philosophy. It is because he taught humans how to think. The art of reason is what makes a man a human being. And this is what teaches us about the real nature of the divine and his creations. Though, we know that there were many dialogues in which Plato uses Socrates’ mouth to explain his views. But in his earlier dialogues, we can somewhat guess about the real Socrates.
It is Not Poison; It Is The Elixir of Life
It was the summer of 399 BC when Socrates was about 70 years old. The old man had many followers, and the ruling authorities were afraid, for they knew the youth is with Socrates and that is dangerous for the state. Many accusations were made against him. The two most important among them were he did not believe in Athenian gods and is corrupting the city’s youth and young men. At that time, the Athenian government collects all the revenues and taxes in the name of their state religion. But because of Socrates, people, mainly the youth, began to rebel against these government policies. Finally, this case came to court. Socrates was arrested and sent to the court, where the people voted against him. The result was to execute Socrates.
Many of his disciples tried to convince Socrates to leave Athens. But his answer was he will not do so. Finally, he asked for his last wish to give him free meals until his execution. The day finally arrived, and Socrates got ready for his execution. He bathed that day to make it easy for his family. Then he went into prison, and that day the whole time of his was spent in philosophical discussions. In the evening, he went to see his family members for the last time. Then again, he came back and spent the rest of the time with his pupils and friends. The day started to fall, and a man with a small cup went into the prison room. He gave it to Socrates, telling him to drink it. It was Hemlock.
Socrates took the cup as if it was water that was presented to him. He completed his last discussion, which was said to be on life and the human’s soul. His pupils started to cry as they did not want him to die. But he asked them to be silent. He drank the Poison and laid down.
That was the death of Socrates. The man is one of the most influential personalities in the history of philosophy. He was the man who sacrificed his life for the sake of knowledge, for the sake of truth, and for the sake of philosophy. He is among the best, the wisest, and the most upright.
Paintings and Literature
Numerous paintings and books are there on Socrates. The two most well-known paintings are of Jacques-Louis David’s “The Death of Socrates”. Another famous one depicting Socrates is of Raphael “The School of Athens”, In which we can see Socrates on the left side.
Clouds by Aristophanes, books of Plato, and recently The Art of Living by Alexander Nehamas. These are some of the books highly rated on this topic.
This was the story of a man who gave us the philosophical method. He taught me how to know and what to know. He is like a light, a hand that will always help us and will guide us all. It is up to you to be either guided by wisdom or by falsehood.
