Socrates As Navia puts it, "there are not many things that are known about Socrates with certainty," (15). Historians do know the philosophers years of birth and death (469 BCE and 399 BCE, respectively), and the fact that he was poisoned by an Athenian jury much as Plato described the matter in his Apology. As with Jesus, Socrates life is pieced together by the writings of other people, many of whom did not actually know the philosopher or even live during the same era. Beck claims that the lack of reliable historiography related to the life of Socrates is known as the "Socratic Problem." Navia states that the Socratic Problem also entails the fact that anything that is known about Socrates from one source is readily contradicted by another. The Socratic Problem can never be solved, because there are no definitive sources. Socrates did not leave behind an autobiography, and even if he did, it might be considered problematic as well. Furthermore, Socrates often features as a fictionalized character in works such as Aristophanes' The Clouds. Therefore, Socrates is as much a...
One thing that can be known for sure is that Socrates was a "man of great complexity," (Beck 1). Socrates was a teacher and a philosopher, possibly an eccentric, and certainly a controversial figure. It has been suggested that any overlap between the major sources of information about Socrates constitutes absolute truth, but Nails notes that this approach is flawed because there is actually "too little overlap" (1).
Socrates Both comedy and tragedy are "related to emotional needs and religious longings that became crystallized and structured in ritualistic celebrations and festivals," (34). Both can be framed as "catalysts" that force "some sort of conversion" in the individual (34). Moreover, both comedy and tragedy reflect the "eternal spectacle of human nature and its weaknesses," (35). Both art forms use imitation or mimicry of a political figure or idea. However, there are
Socrates Self-knowledge is a prerequisite for wisdom. For Socrates, self-knowledge or self-understanding is the precursor of the ability to probe the world outside of the self. In fact, Socratic wisdom is wisdom that is manifest and known. The Socratic process of probing and inquiry is designed specifically to eliminate that which cannot be known or that which is irrelevant to the pursuit of wisdom and understanding. The process of Socratic dialogue
And the irony is that he was sentenced to death because he questioned the laws and the gods trying to save Athens from a process of decay which had already started before the defeat in the conflict with Sparta. As far as the theme of knowledge and wisdom is concerned, Socrates believed that he was an ignorant. What made him valuable was his capacity to realize how limited his knowledge
Euthyphro, Socrates questions Euthyphro about his proposed course of action concerning his father. Explain in detail the reason given by Euthyphro. "In the Euthyphro, where Socrates and Euthyphro wrestle with the concept of holiness, the substantive part of the conversation begins with the typical Socratic question: 'Tell me then, what do you say that holiness is, and what, unholiness?'" (5c)" (Navia 102). In the dialogue, the self-proclaimed pious Euthyphro is
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