This tool will help improve your critical thinking - Erick Wilberding

TED-Ed2021-04-12

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💫 Short Summary

Socrates, a key figure in Western philosophy, used the Socratic Method of questioning to prompt critical thinking and challenge assumptions. Despite his critical views on Athenian democracy, his teachings were influential in various fields. Socrates' trial and death sentence were likely due to his controversial ideas, but he remained depicted as a serene philosopher. A good Socratic educator is well-versed, modest, curious, and affirming, emphasizing critical reasoning in education.

✨ Highlights

📊 Transcript

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Socrates utilized dialogues to challenge assumptions and promote critical thinking.

02:27

The Socratic Method involved asking questions to expose flaws in logic and enhance understanding.

This approach has influenced fields such as medicine, sciences, and law.

The method encourages individuals to explore ideas and eliminate contradictory reasoning.

Its adaptability and effectiveness in fostering analytical skills have made it a valuable tool in education and problem-solving.

✦

Socratic education and the trial of Socrates.

04:26

Socratic education focuses on critical reasoning, with a successful teacher being well-versed in their subject and possessing qualities of modesty, curiosity, and affirmation.

Despite Socrates' critical views on Athenian democracy, his teachings were distorted, leading to accusations of inspiring treason.

Socrates' trial and death sentence were likely a result of his controversial ideas.

Even in his final moments, Socrates remained depicted as a serene philosopher, always curious about exploring ultimate questions.

00:08Socrates, one of the founding fathers of Western philosophical thought,

00:13was on trial.

00:14Many Athenians believed he was a dangerous enemy of the state,

00:18accusing the philosopher of corrupting the youth

00:21and refusing to recognize their gods.

00:23However, Socrates wasn’t feared for claiming to have all the answers,

00:28but rather, for asking too many questions.

00:31While he loathed formal lectures,

00:34the philosopher frequently engaged friends and strangers

00:37in lengthy conversations about morality and society.

00:41These discussions weren’t debates, nor would Socrates offer explicit advice.

00:47In fact, the philosopher often claimed to know nothing at all,

00:50responding to his partner's answers only with further questions.

00:55But through this process, Socrates probed their logic,

00:58revealing its flaws and helping both parties reach a more robust understanding.

01:04These insightful questions made Socrates beloved by his followers.

01:09Two of his students, Plato and Xenophon, were so inspired

01:13that they replicated their mentor’s process in fictional dialogues.

01:17These invented exchanges provide perfect examples

01:21of what would come to be known as the Socratic Method.

01:24In one of these fabricated dialogues,

01:27Socrates is conversing with a young man named Euthydemus,

01:31who is confident that he understands the nature of justice and injustice.

01:36Socrates probes the student’s values by asking him to label actions

01:41such as lying and theft as just or unjust.

01:45Euthydemus confidently categorizes them as injustices,

01:49but this only prompts another question:

01:52is it just for a general to deceive or pillage a hostile army?

01:57Euthydemus revises his assertion.

02:00He claims that these actions are just when done to enemies,

02:03and unjust when done to friends.

02:06But Socrates isn’t finished.

02:08He asks the young man to consider a commander lying to his troops

02:13to boost their morale.

02:15Before long, Euthydemus is despondent.

02:18It seems that every answer leads to further problems,

02:21and perhaps he’s not quite sure what constitutes justice after all.

02:27In employing this question-oriented approach,

02:30Socrates described himself as a midwife,

02:33whose inquiries assist others in giving birth to their ideas.

02:38His method of questioning draws out an individual’s unexamined assumptions,

02:43and then challenges those biases.

02:45It doesn't always provide definitive answers,

02:48but the method helps clarify the questions

02:50and eliminate contradictory or circular logic.

02:55And by following a line of inquiry where it logically leads,

02:58both the question asker and answerer can end up in unexpected places.

03:04This technique isn’t limited by the conversation’s content,

03:08making it incredibly useful in numerous fields.

03:11During the Renaissance, the method was used to teach clinical medicine.

03:15Students proposed their rationale for different diagnoses,

03:19while a doctor questioned their assumptions and moderated discussion.

03:23In this model, the method could even produce conclusive results.

03:27This same approach was later used in other sciences,

03:30such as astronomy, botany, and mathematics.

03:34Following the Protestant Reformation,

03:36it was adapted to tackle abstract questions of faith.

03:40In the 19th century, the method became an essential part

03:43of American legal education.

03:46Professors explored students’ understanding of judicial reasoning

03:50by challenging them with unforeseen hypothetical situations.

03:55This approach is still used today by the Supreme Court

03:58to imagine the unintended impacts of passing a law.

04:02The Socratic Method can be adapted to teach almost any topic

04:06that relies on critical reasoning,

04:09but its success depends on the teacher employing it.

04:12An effective Socratic educator must be well versed in their subject.

04:17Rather than bullying their students or showing off their superior intellect,

04:21they should be modest, genuinely curious, and affirming of every contribution.

04:26In this regard, Socrates himself

04:29may not have been the most subtle Socratic teacher.

04:32Historians believe he was deeply critical of Athens’ particular brand of democracy,

04:38and known to pass those concerns onto his followers.

04:42These subversive beliefs were distorted in public forums

04:45and thought to have inspired two of his pupils to treasonous ends.

04:50It was likely for these ideas Socrates was brought to trial,

04:53and eventually, sentenced to death.

04:56But even on his deathbed, artists depict a serene philosopher—

05:01ever curious to explore the ultimate question.

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