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The philosopher Socrates remains, as he was in his lifetime — B. All our information about him is second-hand and most of it vigorously disputed, but his trial and death at the hands of the Athenian democracy is nevertheless the founding myth of the academic discipline of philosophy, and his influence has been felt far beyond philosophy itself, and in every age. Because his life is widely considered paradigmatic not only for the philosophic life but, more generally, for how anyone ought to live, Socrates has been encumbered with the adulation and emulation normally reserved for religious figures — strange for someone who tried so hard to make others do their own thinking and for someone convicted and executed on the charge of irreverence toward the gods. Certainly he was impressive, so impressive that many others were moved to write about him, all of whom found him strange by the conventions of fifth-century Athens: in his appearance, personality, and behavior, as well as in his views and methods. Each age, each intellectual turn, produces a Socrates of its own. Sign In Don't have an account? Categories :. Cancel Save. Socrates The Problem With Socrates

The Sophists had brilliantly exposed the chaos of all philosophy which was written until their time.

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This is because Socrates is perhaps the only major philosopher who left no writing of his own. Whatever we know about his ideas is through the dialogues of Plato. The chief challenge for Socrates was Wifh answer the serious questions raised by the Sophists. For Https://amazonia.fiocruz.br/scdp/blog/story-in-italian/born-free-and-equal-is-it-best.php, the task was to restore back the faith that human reason could find universal truths. Socrates was chiefly interested in human morality. He just could not fathom the Sophistic view that morality was relative.

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After all, if morality was relative, then men would just turn to their baser instincts. If morality was relative, every evil act could be defended.

Any semblance of a civilized society would be gone. According to Socrates, there were certain moral principles which were true for all. These principles were not subjective; these were not dependent on particular customs, but were universal. If such definitions could be found out, it would give Socratws realistic goals on how to lead their lives.

This would prevent them from the onslaught of nihilistic doctrines of moral relativism. With the help of these definitions, one could find a Socrates The Problem With Socrates way of living. This, Says Socrates, is a dangerous mistake. It is true that there is a diversity of thought; but it is our duty to discover whether beneath the clash of opinions there may not be a fundamental agreement, some common ground on which all can stand, some principle to which all can subscribe.

Thilly, History of Philosophy, pg. His aim was practical. He wanted to find a fool proof way of finding such truths. One of the first steps towards finding true definitions of things was to trim down those definitions which were superfluous. Hastily formed opinions were mostly faulty, and according to him, they needed a revamp.

The Challenge of Sophistry

Here is an excerpt from The Memorabilia, a book written by Xenophon. This is in the form Socrates The Problem With Socrates a dialogue between Socrates and one of his students, Euthydemus. The dialogue starts by Euthydemus telling Socrates that he regards good and evil according to how they contribute to health and disease.

The dialogue takes Socrates The Problem With Socrates as the following:. Euthydemus : Health in itself I hold to be good, and disease in itself an evil. Socrates, health can surely never be the source of evil, neither can disease be a source of good, can they? Socrates : Why? Surely, they can be! It is not good to form such hasty opinions! In the event of a ill-starred expedition or of some disastrous voyage or of some similar incident, those who were healthy enough to take part in them perished, while those who were feeble enough to be left behind were saved. Euthydemus : Yes, you are right. But you have to admit, there are advantages to be had from strength and loss from weakness! Socrates : Yes, but should we regard those things which help us at some moments and injure us at another as good rather than as evil?

Euthydemus : No, certainly not! They are evil then. Click wisdom, respected sir, you must regard as good, for there is nothing in which a wise man would not do better than a fool.]