Philosopher · Classical Greece · Greece

Socrates

c. 470–399 BC

Athenian philosopher who wrote nothing. What is known of him comes chiefly from Plato, Xenophon, and Aristophanes. Tried and put to death by Athens in 399 BC.

Facts

Life: About 470 to 399 BC, Athens. The birth year is traditional, not a record.; Source: Encyclopaedia Britannica, Socrates
Writings: None. The speaking Socrates of the dialogues is Plato's, and the portraits do not agree with each other.; Source: Encyclopaedia Britannica, Socrates
Trial: 399 BC. The charge was impiety and corrupting the young. The sentence was death. He drank hemlock.; Source: Encyclopaedia Britannica, Socrates

The record

Socrates left no book. Plato's dialogues are the main source, and they are not a transcript. Xenophon wrote a different portrait. Aristophanes mocked him on stage while he was alive. A fact about 'Socrates said' is a fact about one of those texts until it is pinned to a passage.

Athens tried him in 399 BC for impiety and corrupting the young, and executed the sentence by hemlock. Plato's Apology is the famous account of the defense. It is a literary work by a student, not a court stenograph.

Connected

Links in both directions: what this page points to, and what points here.

PhilosopherPlatoc. 428–c. 348 BC CivilizationClassical Athens5th–4th century BC TextRepublicc. 375 BC EraClassical Greece5th–4th century BC CountryGreece

Books

RepublicPlato · c. 375 BC

A dialogue on justice in the city and in the soul, with Socrates as the main speaker. It describes a city ruled by philosopher-guardians, with private property and the private family abolished for that class, and contains the philosopher-king and what the text calls a noble lie.

Book note

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