Socrates Once Fought for His Freedom

Today we see Socrates through the writings of his student Plato. Perhaps this is why Socrates seems so perfect. Surely, the real Socrates possessed faults that his dramatized counterpart did not. Still, a man who inspired all that Socrates did must have been among the best of men. Indeed, in some ways Socrates was even better than his contemporary reputation. Today, few know that Socrates was a trained hoplite (foot soldier) in the Athenian army. A courageous fighter, he was commended for bravery in the battle of Delium (424 B.C.) and saved his friend Alcibiades during a battle near Spartolus in 434 B.C. He was literally a warrior-philosopher.

            As a young man Socrates was taught rhetoric as part of the regimented Athenian system for teaching a boy to become a man who could defend the city, ply a trade, and debate in Athens’ citizen Assembly. He then took to philosophy and stood up to the Sophists, philosophers who believed that winning a debate was more important than being right. The Sophists used half-truths and turns of phrase to win their arguments, achieving personal gain while leading others astray. Socrates tirelessly combated the Sophists and their method, all the while striving to discover truth. According to Plato, Socrates condemned the Sophists saying, “False words are not only evil in themselves, but they infect the soul with evil.” In the course of his battles with Sophists, Socrates became known as the “gadfly” of Athens (the gadfly was said to sting horses into stampedes) because he irritated the establishment with questions that probed for the truth.

            During his life, Socrates offered much wisdom, but there are two teachings in particular that every man should take to heart. The first is that the truly wise man is the man who, paradoxically, does not consider himself wise. As told in Plato’s Apology, Socrates’ friend Chaerephon had asked the Oracle at Delphi if there was any man wiser than Socrates. The Oracle responded that none was wiser. Socrates then began to question men who were considered wise and discovered that each man believed that they knew a great deal, but they were not, in fact, truly wise. Socrates, on the other hand, did not consider himself to be wise, and therefore was the wisest of them all. This story highlights the importance of humility and of constantly striving for truth and wisdom. If a man thinks that he is wise, he will stop pursuing truth.

            Finally, in his quest for wisdom, Socrates often questioned prominent Athenians and so found himself opposed by the powerful elite of the city. These enemies were the underlying reason that Socrates was found guilty of corrupting the youth of Athens. After he was sentenced to death, Socrates had an opportunity to escape when his friends bribed the prison guards. But he chose to stay and accept his death because he believed that fleeing justice would signify a fear of death, which he thought no true philosopher (or man, for that matter) has. He also believed that running away from the law would go against his own teachings. So, not wanting to live out the rest of his days as a hypocrite, Socrates courageously accepted death. Socrates also realized that death was not the end. “Crito,” he began his last words, “we owe a cock to Asclepius. Please don’t forget to pay the debt.” Asclepius was the Greek god for curing illness. Plato interpreted Socrates’ last words to mean that death is a cure that gives freedom to the soul. Unwavering in his principles, Socrates lived life and accepted death as every man should.