The Socratic Method

or why Socrates had to drink hemlock

On May 29, 2023

For those of you who haven’t had the chance to learn greek or (for the madlads amongst you) latin at school, the WN improves your general knowledge with a little trick right from the ancient times, and that will make sure to annoy all your friends.

So, the socratic method, what is it, and what is Socrates even doing here ?

The socratic method, or maieutics comes from the greek μαιευτική, by analogy with Maïa from greek mythologywho looked after the childbirths. It is a technique that involves cleverly questionning someone to make them express their knowledge.
To put it simply, it involves asking someone questions until they tells us to go die, while giving them no respite.
Let’s give an exemple from the everyday life (you’ll need to be a little imaginative) : your best friend just told you that he (at last) found a boyfriend (yes, everyone is gay, we are supposedly in ancient Greece, remember). Here is a list of questions that you could ask, in this order, and no matter the answers given, in order to know his vision of Passion, with a big P.

Is life better now?
What makes you say that?
Do you think breaking up will be difficult?
Why?
But do you see your future with this person?
So is it love, or Love?
How can you know?

Please note that you never asked his name or how they met, because the socratic method is not just some small talk for nice people. What YOU want, is Truth. Can’t care less of your friends.

And Socrates, you may ask ? Well, he’s the father of this psychological torture technique. He even made it his specialty, to the point that Plato wrote entire books about it, at the time paper was sooo expensive (on average, a drachma and a few obols, that’s more than 120€ per papyrus sheet).

By dint of going to see the elites of Athens to pass them off as jesters with incessant questions, a handful of them ganged up to bring down Socrates. He is convicted on charges of “corrupting the youth” (read: mocking elites with a gang of young people) and “godlessness” (i.e. disrespecting religious authorities), and he could have gotten out of it cheaper than the death penalty if he hadn’t chosen to make fun of the bouleutes one last time, for the sake of it.

Do you want to try this technique with shamelessly? Join the WN, we need reporters.