The great philosopher Socrates invented a unique methoddiscussion under the name of maieutics. This is a very effective technique, which is used in our time. In fact, he is perhaps the only way to convince his opponent of the opposite. In this case, the interlocutor can be skillfully driven into a dead end by his own statements. What is the essence and uniqueness of this method? Let's try to figure it out.
Not much is known about the life of Socrates, but the information that has reached us through the centuries seems to be very interesting.
Socrates - the Athenian philosopher, born in 469 BC. e. It was his figure that marked the so-called turn in philosophy from the consideration of nature to the consideration of man.
As for the life and fate of the philosopher,some patristic theologians made analogies between Socrates and Jesus. It is known that the first was the son of a sculptor. In adulthood, he married Xantippe - a very grumpy woman, whose name even became a household name.
“I only know that I know nothing, but others do not even know it.” Perhaps everyone has heard this phrase, which, according to the researchers, belongs to Socrates. According to this principle, he lived.
It is known that the philosopher did not leave behindlines. The mankind learned about his thoughts and beliefs only from the works of his students - Xenophon and Plato. Socrates was convinced that writing down his own thoughts weakens human memory. To the truth of his students, the thinker has led through a skillfully built dialogue. It was in conversations and dialogues that he created his own method, now known as maieutics. This can be called a huge contribution to philosophical thought.
In 399 BC, the great sage was accusedin blasphemy and corruption of the younger generation. We learn about the Socrates' court process from the works of Plato and Xenophon. The philosopher refused to pay the fine, as well as the offer of friends to abduct him from prison.
Was Socrates really guilty?According to modern historians from the University of Cambridge, was. At that time, the actions of the eccentric philosopher could indeed be classified as illegal.
As a result, the thinker was sentenced to deathpenalty, and he himself took poison. The process of death of Socrates describes in detail the same Plato. What exactly was poisoned sage, is unknown. According to one hypothesis, it was a spotty hemlock.
Socrates really became a victim of his wisdom.However, his thoughts still live today, including the unique method of maieutics. Let's try to figure out in more detail what it is, what are its features.
Maieutics is the “art of the midwife,” as Socrates himself called it. You can also find such a definition as "Socratic irony" or "Socratov conversation."
Mayeutics in philosophy is, in fact, a wayimplementation of the principle of "know yourself". With this technique, the opponent is not only aware of his wrong, he also becomes an applicant for true knowledge. “Nothing is stronger than knowledge” - that's exactly what Socrates said ...
Translated from Greek, maieutics is"Midwifery art". The essence of this technique is to bring the interlocutor to an understanding of the real state of affairs by means of suggestive, specially thought-out questions. Thus, the opponent himself comes to the truth, and you only imperceptibly push him to it.
Maieutics Socrates is first and foremost a skill.put literate questions in the dialogue. The philosopher was convinced that true knowledge can only come through the self-knowledge of another person. And this requires a purification procedure, carried out by asking questions about the nature of a phenomenon.
Великий философ лично разработал метод, который not lost its relevance to this day. No one will deny that it is the dialogue, discussion, constructive dispute that is an important tool for obtaining new knowledge and awareness of the level of its incompetence.
In general, Socrates in his life only didthat asked questions. He liked to talk with a self-confident person, to watch how he, entangled in his tricky questions, instantly lost all his pride and confidence.
Нужно отметить, что диалог по принципу “Question-answer” was actively used by other philosophers, in particular, by sophists. However, their argument was only an end in itself. But Socrates never dealt with verbiage, he believed that any dialogue should lead to a specific goal. In his conversations, he himself tried to find answers to the fundamental questions of being: "What is good from evil?", "What is justice?" etc.
Socrates was a very crafty, ironic and dangerous interlocutor. Usually in conversations he pretended to be a naive simpleton, luring an opponent into his insidious nets.
Сохранилась запись разговора мудреца с неким Menon. To begin with, Socrates asked the latter about the nature of his activity. Unaware of any dirty tricks, the good-natured Menon begins to teach the philosopher. However, very soon, due to competently posed questions, the interlocutor is finally lost. Socrates, in turn, continues to sneer at the naive sacrifice.
Когда оппонент лишался своей самоуверенности, он was ready for a joint search for truth. Asking another, Socrates himself investigated the subject of conversation, because he did not consider himself to be knowledgeable. That is why he called his art "midwives", because truth was born in such a dialogue.
So maieutics in philosophy isthe art of asking questions. Socrates was sure that “to know is to know what it is.” That is, to be fair, you need to clearly understand what justice is and be able to give it an adequate definition. Thus, Socrates first brought knowledge to the level of the concept.
The maeutics method we are considering has not lostits relevance even more than two thousand years after its invention. And today you can meet craftsmen who effectively use this technique in practice.
