Plato's Apology

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Recommended: Socrates specific understanding of wisdom

Socrates is a Greek philosopher who practices and teaches the citizens of Athens the activity of questioning and the importance of pursuing wisdom. Socrates insists on integrating the thoughts and opinions of mankind to discover moral and political beliefs of the public. Most of Socrates life and teachings were recorded by one of his students Plato, who is also a Greek philosopher. Even though throughout his life Socrates received a lot of negative feedback for his beliefs and teachings, he continued to pursue his love for philosophy. Socrates love and dedication for philosophy helped him develop his sense of character which determines what he does and why he does it throughout his lifetime. In Plato's “Apology”, concepts of socratic wisdom, …show more content…

Unlike many others, Socrates has a different view on what is means to be wise. For example, today many people believe having wisdom only means being intelligent and knowledgeable. Socrates would refute this by arguing, wisdom is not to know something but to know you don't know something and learn. In the “Apology”, the Oracle at Delphi speaks for the gods and says there is no one wiser than Socrates. Socrates doesn’t believe this and challenges this claim by questioning wise men with different careers. After conversing with them Socrates concludes that they are in fact ignorant because they believe they know everything. This then leads him to the resolution that he is wise because he does not think he is wise. This concept or way of thinking about wisdom is one of Socrates teachings referred to as socratic wisdom. To Socrates, socratic wisdom is an important part of philosophy. Believing that oneself is not wise encourages and insists a society to ask questions and learn, therefore practicing the act of philosophy. Along with socratic wisdom, came Socrates theory of socratic method, which is still practiced and learned about today in …show more content…

This concept is known to be one of his most important contributions to philosophy, its purpose is to expose ignorance and obtain wisdom and knowledge (“Socrates”). There is a series of steps Socrates makes while pursuing this method, in hope that in the end an individual or group of people will join him in questioning to search for a better answer. First, Socrates begins by listening to the opinions and ideas of others. These people may be the gods, accusers, noblemen, or anyone else he comes in contact with. Following their answers and thoughts, Socrates never responses negatively or tells them their answer is wrong. He always asks the person further questions instead. This could be to ask for clarification, ask about their assumptions, or to employ an analogy to get a better answer or a better understanding on their thoughts. Simply expressing the ideas and actions many philosophers would take in a given situation. Next, based on the reactions of the person, he leads them with a claim to let them see the issue for themselves. He analyzes their thoughts and discovers if they see what is weak or inconsistent about their accusations for themselves. In some cases, a person can run away with an unchanged opinion or, in favor of Socrates, they can join him to search for a better answer to discover a stronger opinion or question. This idea of constantly

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