Socrates: Wisdom, Ethics, and Death
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ScribdTranslationsSocrates: Wisdom, Ethics, and Death
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ScribdTranslationsSocrates, life and philosophy
Questionnaire
1. How did Socrates acquire the reputation of 'wise'? Explain the episode and interpret.
the famous exposed phrase.
Plato recounts how the Oracle of Delphi claimed that no one was wiser than Socrates. To
understand this response, Socrates subjects politicians, poets, and artisans to examination and
finally understands the meaning of the oracle: Socrates is the wisest because he knows his
ignorance. "Athenians, do not protest, nor, although it may seem that I am saying something presumptuous;
the words I am going to say are not mine, but I will refer to the one who said them, worthy of
credit to you. From my wisdom, if there is any and what it is, I am going to present you as
witness to the god who is in Delphi. Indeed, you surely knew Cherephon. He was
my friend since youth and a member of the democratic party, went into exile and returned with
you all. And you already know how Querefonte was, how passionate he was about what he undertook. Well
Well, once he went to Delphi and had the audacity to ask the oracle this - but how I
said, do not protest, Athenians-, asked if there was anyone wiser than me. The Pythia replied to him.
he replied that no one was wiser.
2. What is, according to Socrates, the supreme good for human beings?
For Socrates, the good is the end, a state of fullness and authenticity that is sought through the process.
through which man develops moral perfection, becoming virtuous, to reach the
happiness.
3. Why did Socrates not write down ideas?
Socrates did not write down any ideas because he believed that each person should create and
to develop their own ideas and that he had nothing to teach.
4. What is the difference between Socrates and the sophists?
Socrates believed that truth cannot be taught. He did not charge for teaching and spoke with
any Athenian anywhere. In contrast, the sophists charged for teaching and their
the teachings were mainly aimed at those who wished to understand the art of politics.
Socrates pursued the truth through the analysis of the definitions of concepts.
morales. The truth is discovered through a maieutic process (of analysis to help give birth)
the truth within oneself). In contrast, the sophists sought persuasion; through
Argumentative ploys sought the reasoning most capable of moving their audience.
But his speech sought to create democratic consensus and establish the law in the city.
5. Why was Socrates' way of teaching considered subversive by his
contemporaries?
This art of teaching will primarily unfold in two major moments, to
knowledge: in irony and maieutics. Both will require a certain basis: knowing oneself
same, which will translate first as knowing one's own limits, that is,
self-incidence, his ignorance, "to know that one does not know" would say in Plato's Apology.
6. Why did Socrates criticize and distance himself from Greek democracy?
Socrates believed that the main needs to be satisfied were three:
maintenance, security of the city against other cities and among its members, and the
city government. These three needs determine three classes: a class of
manufacturers whose members must be the naturally qualified individuals to carry out
this function. A class of warriors whose bravery will ensure that they meet the need of
security. A class of rulers whose wisdom will ensure the best government
7. What were the accusations that the Greek court decreed against Socrates?
After the religious accusations, there were strictly political motivations.
this sense, and in relation to the specific theme of the present study, I intend to analyze the
hypothesis, supported by various contemporary scholars, of a political background in the
trial for irreligiosity against Socrates. The method to follow to provide a response to a
the problem of such difficult resolution will fundamentally be that of comparing the main
sources that deal with the topic. Also other accusations that brought Socrates to trial,
They had a political character, at least in the broad and primal sense of the term.
8. Why does Socrates question: politicians, poets, and artisans?
Socrates understood that all classes believed they knew, but in truth, they knew nothing.
The politicians were the worst, not because they were politicians (Socrates himself was a kind of
politician), but because they were unable to teach their knowledge: a person
He really knew how to explain his knowledge.
Even the best politicians (like Pericles) were not capable of doing this (says Socrates).
The same applied to poets, who had been well regarded since Homer.
Everyone thought they were wise and capable of teaching everything to the youth. Socrates
he corrected them because they were saying stupid things and because they were not wise: their knowledge was not
It was a kind of 'inspired madness'
9. Explain the Socratic expression 'I only know that I know nothing.' Does it have any resonance in
the current situation?
This sentence proposes the idea that the individual does not have the absolute truth, and that it is
it is important that this person has the availability and willingness to learn, as well as to acquire
nuevos saberes y conocimientos. Lo podemos traer a la actualidad ya que algunas personas
we believe and consider ourselves to know everything about a particular topic, but the truth is that
uno aprende cada día de las experiencias sobre dicho conocimiento.
10. Why does Socrates choose death over exile?
Socrates defended the laws of Athens his whole life and believed that it was those laws that...
that built that city and to evade the laws is to mock the society that you are in
I create, Socrates intuitively knew that his suicide would make him memorable and highlight his philosophy.
11. How does Socrates relate the fear of death to knowledge?
Socrates said, 'The fear of death, gentlemen, is nothing other than considering oneself wise without'
Indeed, it is to believe you know about that which you do not know. Perhaps death is the greatest
the blessing of the human being, nobody knows it, and yet everyone fears it as if
I knew with absolute certainty that it is the worst of evils.” To which he referred that without
to know things we already feared their consequences.
12. Why, according to Socrates, should one not evade death at any cost?
Socrates' attitude towards death, as he himself recounts in his defense, is one of
absolute trust and tranquility; he feels no fear of her; especially when she
Confronts acts of injustice: "I would make no concessions to anyone against what is right out of fear.
to death, and I would be willing to die on the spot, as long as I do not give in. In this sense,
Socrates asserts that "being dead is one of two things: either the one who has died is
nothing and has no perception of anything, or it is, as it is said, a
luck of the change of state and migration of the soul from this place here to another site
