Great Thinkers on Self-Education: Socrates

The unexamined life is not worth living.

Who is Socrates?

Socrates (c 470 BC 399 BC) was a renowned Greek teacher, now recognized as the father of
Western philosophy. During his life, Socrates often disrupted the status quo by questioning the
public and creating controversy. His views on knowledge and truth have influenced the way
many people view learning.

Socrates preferred conversational teaching and didnt leave a single record behind. As a result,
all of the quotes from Socrates we have today are actually from the writings of his students
(primarily Plato and Xenophon).

Eventually, Socrates was accused of failing to recognize the gods of the city and corrupting the
youth through his teachings. According to Platos Apology, Socrates took a strong stand at the
trial despite his awareness of the potential consequences. He was ultimately sentenced to death
and willingly drank a cup of poisonous hemlock instead of attempting to escape with his friends.

Socrates Educational Philosophy

Socrates had a lot to say about knowledge and wisdom. On the topic of self-education, he
believed that:

Wisdom begins in admitting your own ignorance.

Self-knowledge is the ultimate virtue.

 People can arrive at truth through questioning.

Admitting Ignorance

Today, many teachers will pretend to know more than they actually do. Socrates, however, would
readily admit his own ignorance. In fact, he believed that recognizing this lack of knowledge set
him apart from other thinkers. I know that I am intelligent, because I know that I know
nothing, he explained.

In the Apology, Socrates meets many wise politicians, poets, and artisans. Each time he realizes
that he is better off because he is aware of his own ignorance. After visiting with a wise and well-
regarded man, Socrates said, Although I do not suppose that either of us knows anything really
beautiful and good, I am better off than he is, for he knows nothing and thinks that he knows; I
neither know nor think that I know. By admitting his ignorance, Socrates freed himself to
question the status quo and the so-called common sense beliefs of his fellow Athenians.

The Virtue of Self-Knowledge

Socrates believed that knowledge was the ultimate virtue, best used to help people improve their
lives. The only good is knowledge and the only evil is ignorance, he said. Socrates believed
that people made immoral choices because they did not have knowledge. Unless they examined
their lives and gained wisdom, people would continue to make mistakes in ignorance.

Instead of valuing money and worldly prestige, Socrates honored knowledge. Even when his life
was on the line, he proclaimed:

While I have life and strength I shall never cease from the practice and teaching of philosophy,
exhorting any one whom I meet and saying to him after my manner: You, my friend a citizen of
the great and mighty Athens are you not ashamed of heaping up the greatest amount of money
and honor, and reputation, and caring so little about wisdom and truth and the greatest
improvement of the soul, which you never regard at all?

Socrates urged people to care more about developing their own understanding, knowledge he
believed would lead to both goodness and happiness.

Truth through Questioning

Socrates greatest contribution to fellow learners is his theory of questioning, now called the
Socratic Method. To gain true knowledge, Socrates believed that an issue must be broken into
smaller questions. The answers help the thinker recognize contradictions and distill the truth.

In Xenophons The Economist, Socrates discusses this method with another thinker:

Really, Ischomachus, I am disposed to ask: Does teaching consist in putting questions?

Indeed, the secret of your system has just this instant dawned upon me. I seem to see the
principle in which you put your questions. You lead me through the field of my own knowledge,
and then by pointing out analogies to what I know, persuade me that I really know some things
which hitherto, as I believed, I had no knowledge of.

Today, the Socratic Method is used by many learners in more formal settings. Teachers of
humanities and law often apply it to help students evaluate their thinking. The Scientific Method
is even said to be an ancestor of Socretes style of questing.

How Socrates Made a Difference

In the modern world, many learners rely on Socrates philosophies. His style of questioning,
recognition of ignorance, and belief in the value of self-examination / knowledge still resonate
with many independent thinkers.

Steve Jobs once said that hed trade all his technology for an afternoon with Socrates. Many
learners would do the same.

References:

http://selfmadescholar.com/b/2009/06/02/great-thinkers-on-self-education-socrates/

Prepared by:

AYLEN L. LATORZA

Anoling Elementary School

Pinamalayan West District