Everyone has heard of Socrates at least once in their life. This ancient Greek philosopher left a bright mark not only in the history of Hellas, but in all philosophy. Of particular interest to study is Socrates' dialectic as the art of creative dialogue. This method became the basis of the entire teachings of the ancient Greek philosopher. Our article is devoted to Socrates and his teachings, which became the basis for the further development of philosophy as a science.
Socrates: genius and unmercenary
A lot has been said about the great philosopher, his personality has been mentioned more than once in the development of philosophy and psychology. The phenomenon of Socrates was considered from different angles, and the story of his life was overgrown with incredible details. To understand what Socrates meant by the term "dialectic" and why he considered it the only possible way to know the truth and come to virtue, you need to know a little about the life of the ancient Greek philosopher.
Socrates was born in the fifth century BC in the family of a sculptor and a midwife. Since the inheritance of the father, according to the law, was to be received by the elder brotherphilosopher, from an early age he had no inclination to accumulate material we alth and spent all his free time on self-education. Socrates had excellent oratorical skills, he could read and write. In addition, he studied the arts and listened to lectures by sophist philosophers who promoted the supremacy of the human "I" over all rules and norms.
Despite the eccentric lifestyle of an urban beggar, Socrates was married, had several children and was known as the bravest warrior who took part in the Peloponnesian War. Throughout his life, the philosopher did not leave Attica and did not even think of his life outside its borders.
Socrates despised material possessions and always walked barefoot in already battered clothes. He did not leave behind a single scientific work or essay, because the philosopher believed that knowledge cannot be taught and implanted in a person. The soul needs to be pushed to the search for truth, and for this, disputes and constructive dialogues are the best suited. Socrates was often accused of the inconsistency of his teachings, but he was always ready to enter into a discussion and listen to the opinion of his opponent. Oddly enough, this turned out to be the best method of persuasion. Almost everyone who has heard of Socrates at least once called him a sage.
The death of the great philosopher is also surprisingly symbolic, it has become a natural continuation of his life and teachings. After accusing Socrates of corrupting the minds of young people with new deities that are not the gods of Athens, the philosopher was put on trial. But he did not wait for the verdict and the imposition of punishment, but he himself proposed execution throughtaking poison. Death in this case was considered by the accused as deliverance from earthly fuss. Despite the fact that friends offered to rescue the philosopher from prison, he refused and steadfastly met his death after taking a dose of poison. According to some sources, there was hemlock in the goblet.
A few strokes to the historical portrait of Socrates
The fact that the Greek philosopher was an outstanding personality can be concluded after one description of his life. But some strokes characterize Socrates especially brightly:
- he always kept himself in good physical shape, engaged in various exercises and believed that this was the best way to a he althy mind;
- the philosopher adhered to a certain nutrition system that eliminated excesses, but at the same time gave the body everything it needed (historians believe that this was what saved him from the epidemic during the Peloponnesian War);
- he spoke badly of written sources - they, according to Socrates, weakened the mind;
- Athenian was always ready for discussion, and in search of knowledge he could travel many kilometers, asking recognized sages.
Since the middle of the nineteenth century, at the time of the highest development of psychology, many have tried to characterize Socrates and his activities in terms of temperament and predispositions. But psychotherapists did not come to a consensus, and they attributed their failure to the minimum amount of reliable information about the "patient".
How the teaching of Socrates came to us
PhilosophySocrates - dialectics - became the basis of many philosophical currents and trends. She managed to become a base for modern scientists and speakers, after the death of Socrates, his followers continued the work of a teacher, forming new schools and transforming already known methods. The difficulty in perceiving the teachings of Socrates lies in the absence of his writings. We know about the ancient Greek philosopher thanks to Plato, Aristotle and Xenophon. Each of them considered it a matter of honor to write several essays about Socrates himself and his teachings. Despite the fact that it has come down to our times in the most detailed description, one should not forget that each author brought his own attitude and a touch of subjectivity to the original interpretation. This is easy to see by comparing the texts of Plato and Xenophon. They describe Socrates himself and his activities in completely different ways. In many key points, the authors radically disagree, which significantly reduces the reliability of the information presented in their works.
Socrates' Philosophy: Beginning
The ancient dialectic of Socrates has become a completely new and fresh trend in the established philosophical traditions of Ancient Greece. Some historians consider the appearance of such a character as Socrates quite natural and expected. According to certain laws of the development of the universe, each hero appears exactly when it is most needed. After all, not a single religious movement arose from scratch and did not go anywhere. It, like a grain, fell on fertile soil, in which it germinated and bore fruit. Similar analogies can be made withall scientific achievements and inventions, because they appear at the most necessary moment for mankind, in some cases radically changing the further history of the entire civilization as a whole.
The same can be said about Socrates. In the fifth century BC, art and science developed at a rapid pace. New philosophical currents constantly arose, instantly gaining followers. In Athens, it was quite popular to gather and hold oratory competitions or dialogues on a sensitive topic that interested the entire policy. Therefore, it is not surprising that the dialectic of Socrates arose on this wave. Historians argue that, according to the texts of Plato, Socrates created his teaching as an opposition to the popular philosophy of the sophists, which opposed the consciousness and understanding of the native of Athens.
The birth of the dialectic of Socrates
The subjective dialectic of Socrates completely and completely contradicted the teachings of the sophists about the predominance of the human "I" over all social. This theory was very popular in Attica and was developed in every possible way by Greek philosophers. They argued that a person is not limited by any norms, all her actions come from desires and abilities. In addition, the philosophy of that time was completely aimed at searching for the secrets of the universe and the divine essence. Scientists competed in eloquence, discussing the creation of the world, and sought to imbue as much as possible with the idea of equality between man and the gods. The Sophists believed that penetrating into the highest mysteries would give humanity great power and make it a part of something extraordinary. After all, even in its current statea person is free and can base his actions only on his hidden needs.
Socrates for the first time drew the attention of philosophers to man. He managed to transfer the sphere of interests from the divine to the personal and simple. The knowledge of man becomes the surest way to achieve knowledge and virtue, which Socrates put on the same level. He believed that the secrets of the universe should remain in the sphere of divine interests, but a person, first of all, should know the world through himself. And this should have made him a benevolent member of society, for only knowledge will help to distinguish good from evil and lies from truth.
Ethics and dialectics of Socrates: briefly about the main thing
The main ideas of Socrates were based on simple human values. He believed that he should slightly push his students to search for the truth. After all, these searches are the main task of philosophy. This statement and presentation of science in the form of an endless path became an absolutely fresh trend among the sages of ancient Greece. The philosopher himself considered himself a kind of "midwife", which, through simple manipulations, allows an absolutely new judgment and thinking to be born into the world. Socrates did not deny that the human personality has great potential, but argued that great knowledge and understanding of oneself should lead to the emergence of certain rules of behavior and frameworks that turn into a set of ethical norms.
That is, the philosophy of Socrates led a person to the path of research, when eachnew discovery and knowledge must again lead to questions. But only this path could ensure the receipt of virtue, expressed in knowledge. The philosopher said that having ideas about good, a person will not do evil. Thus, he will put himself in a framework that will help him exist in society and benefit him. Ethical norms are inseparable from self-knowledge, they, according to the teachings of Socrates, follow from each other.
But the knowledge of truth and its birth are possible only through a multifaceted consideration of the subject. Socrates' dialogues on a particular topic served as a tool for finding out the truth, because only in a dispute, where each opponent argues his point of view, can one see the birth of knowledge. Dialectics involves discussion until the truth is fully clarified, each argument receives a counterargument, and so it continues until the ultimate goal is achieved - obtaining knowledge.
Principles of Dialectics
The constituent elements of Socrates' dialectic are quite simple. He used them throughout his life and through them conveyed the truth to his students and followers. They can be represented as follows:
1. "Know Thyself"
This phrase became the basis of Socrates' philosophy. He believed that it was from her that all research should begin, because knowledge of the world is available only to God, and a person is destined for a different fate - he must seek himself and know his capabilities. The philosopher believed that the culture and ethics of the whole nation depends on the level of self-knowledge of each member of society.
2."I know I don't know anything"
This principle significantly distinguished Socrates from other philosophers and sages. Each of them claimed to have the highest body of knowledge and therefore can call himself a sage. Socrates, on the other hand, followed the path of search, which cannot be completed a priori. The boundaries of a person's consciousness can expand to infinity, so insight and new knowledge become just a step on the way to new questions and searches.
Surprisingly, even the Oracle of Delphi considered Socrates the wisest. There is a legend that says that, having learned about this, the philosopher was very surprised and decided to find out the reason for such a flattering characterization. As a result, he interviewed a lot of the most intelligent people of Attica and came to a surprising conclusion: he was recognized as wise because he does not boast of his knowledge. "I know that I know nothing" - this is the highest wisdom, because absolute knowledge is available only to God and cannot be given to man.
3. "Virtue is knowledge"
This idea was very hard to perceive in public circles, but Socrates could always argue his philosophical principles. He argued that any person strives to do only what his heart desires. And it wants only beautiful and beautiful, therefore, understanding virtue, which is the most beautiful, leads to the constant implementation of this idea.
It can be said that each of the above statements of Socrates can be reduced to three pillars:
- self-knowledge;
- philosophical modesty;
- the triumph of knowledge andvirtues.
The dialectic of Socrates is represented as a movement of consciousness towards understanding and achieving an idea. In many situations, the ultimate goal remains elusive and the question remains open.
Socrates Method
Dialectic, created by the Greek philosopher, contains a method that allows you to embark on the path of self-knowledge and finding the truth. It has several basic tools that are still successfully used by philosophers of various currents:
1. Irony
Without the ability to laugh at yourself, it is impossible to come to an understanding of the idea. After all, according to Socrates, dogmatic self-confidence in one's rightness hinders the development of thought and leaves no room for doubt. Based on the method of Socrates, Plato argued that true philosophy begins with wonder. It can make a person doubt, and therefore significantly advance on the path of self-knowledge. The dialectic of Socrates, applied in ordinary conversations with the inhabitants of Athens, often led to the fact that even the most confident Hellenes in their knowledge began to feel disappointed in their former self. We can say that this side of the Socratic method is identical to the second principle of dialectics.
2. Maieutics
Maieutics can be called the last stage of irony, at which the person gives birth to the truth and approaches the understanding of the subject. In practice, it looks like this:
- man gets rid of his arrogance;
- is surprised and disappointed at his ignorance and stupidity;
- comes to understanding the need to seek the truth;
- passes the wayanswers to questions asked by Socrates;
- each new answer creates another question;
- after a series of questions (and many of them can be asked in a dialogue with oneself), the person independently gives birth to the truth.
Socrates argued that philosophy is a continuous process that simply cannot turn into a static value. In this case, one can predict the "death" of a philosopher who becomes a dogmatist.
Maieutics is inseparable from dialogues. It is in them that one can come to knowledge, and Socrates taught his interlocutors and followers to seek the truth in different ways. For this, questions to other people and to yourself are equally good and important. In some cases, it is the question asked to oneself that becomes decisive and leads to knowledge.
3. Induction
The hallmark of Socrates' dialogues is that truth is unattainable. It is the goal, but the philosophy itself is hidden in the movement towards this goal. The urge to search is dialectics in its most direct manifestation. Understanding, according to Socrates, is not the assimilation of truth as food, but only the definition of the necessary subject and the path to it. In the future, only forward movement awaits a person, which should not stop.
Dialectics: stages of development
The dialectic of Socrates was the first and, one might say, a spontaneous stage in the development of a new philosophical thought. It arose in the fifth century BC and continued to develop actively in the future. Some historical stages of Socrates' dialecticphilosophers limit to three main milestones, but in reality they are represented by a more complex list:
- ancient philosophy;
- medieval philosophy;
- Renaissance philosophy;
- philosophy of modern times;
- German classical philosophy;
- Marxist philosophy;
- Russian philosophy;
- modern Western philosophy.
This list eloquently proves that this direction has developed throughout all the historical stages that mankind has passed. Of course, not in each of them did Socrates' dialectics receive a serious impetus for development, but modern philosophy associates with it many concepts and terms that appeared much later than the death of the ancient Greek philosopher.
Conclusion
The contribution of Socrates to the development of modern philosophical science is invaluable. He created a new scientific method of searching for truth and turned the energy of a person into himself, giving him the opportunity to know all the facets of his "I" and make sure the saying is true: "I know that I know nothing."
