The Lives and Opinions of Eminent Philosophers · Chapter
Socrates explained
This chapter recounts the life, character, and death of Socrates, detailing his parentage, early influences (including Anaxagoras and Archelaus), his shift from natural philosophy to moral philosophy, his military service, his trial and exe
What happens
This chapter recounts the life, character, and death of Socrates, detailing his parentage, early influences (including Anaxagoras and Archelaus), his shift from natural philosophy to moral philosophy, his military service, his trial and execution, and the immediate aftermath. It also lists his principal disciples and the Socratic schools that followed.
Themes in this chapter
Death and Legacy
Socrates' trial, condemnation, and execution by hemlock are central; the chapter also discusses his posthumous honor and the founding of Socratic schools.
Ethics and Self-Control
Socrates' shift to moral philosophy, his patient endurance of abuse, and his disciplined military conduct illustrate ethical self-control.
Wisdom vs. Sophistry
Socrates is portrayed as a seeker of truth, contrasting with the sophistical rhetoric mocked by Aristophanes; he is accused of 'making the worse appear the better reason.'
Characters to notice
- Socrates
Main subject of the chapter; his life, teachings, trial, and death are described.
- Plato
Mentioned as a recorder of Socrates' conversations in the Theaetetus and Phaedo, and as a chief successor.
- Xenophon
Mentioned as a disciple and source on Socrates' moral conversations; also saved by Socrates at Delium.
- Antisthenes
Listed among the chief successors of Socrates and founder of the Cynic school.
- Aeschines of Sphettus
Mentioned as a disciple and one of the four most eminent Socratic followers.
- Phaedo of Elis
Listed among the four most eminent Socratic followers.
- Euclides of Megara
Listed among the four most eminent Socratic followers.
- Aristippus of Cyrene
Listed among the four most eminent Socratic followers.
Key passages
“Suppose an ass had kicked me, would you have had me bring an action against him?”
Socrates compared his assailants to a donkey, implying that retaliation would be pointless.
Illustrates his patience and refusal to be provoked.
“What I have understood is good; and so, I think, what I have not understood is; only the book requires a Delian diver to get at the meaning of it.”
Socrates praised Heraclitus' work but noted its obscurity, comparing it to a deep sea that needs a skilled diver.
Shows his humility and critical judgment.
“I deserve a maintenance in the Prytaneum for the rest of my life.”
Socrates argued that his philosophical service to Athens merited public honor and free meals, not punishment.
Highlights his defiant stance at trial.
