(Read before the Vidonian Club, New York, October 16, 1914.)
"CONSCIOUSNESS had reached this point in Greece, when in Athens, the great forum of Socrates, in whom subjectivity of thought was brought to consciousness in a more definite and more thorough manner, now appeared. But Socrates did not grow like a mushroom out of the earth, for he extends in continuity with his time, and this is not only a most important figure in the history of philosophy—but perhaps also a world famed personage." Hegel.
"When Columbus set sail across the untraversed western sea, his purpose was to reach by a new path, a portion of the old, known world, and he lived and died in the belief that he had done so. He never knew that he had discovered a new world. So it was with Socrates. When he launched his spiritual bark upon the pathless ocean of reflected thought, his object was to discover a new way to the old world of little commonwealths and narrow interests, and he probably died thinking he had succeeded. He did not dream that he had discovered a new world—the world of humanity and universal interests. But so it was; and tho mankind are still very far from having made themselves at home in that world, and from having availed themselves of its boundless spiritual treasures, it can never be withdrawn from their sight, or, the conquest of it cease to be the object of their highest aspirations." Thomas Davidson.
INTRODUCTION
The Hellenic influence upon the intellectual development of the world is infinite. The intellectual force emanating from the sources of Greek art, literature and philosophy permeated thru the ages and have helped to shape the destiny of our civilization. "Except the blind forces of Nature," says Sir Henry Sumner Maine, "nothing moves in this world which is not Greek in its origin." [1.] Without a shadow of doubt, Greek Philosophy forms the firm background of progressive and reflective thought in all its phases and ramifications.
In the history and evolution of Hellenic thought, we find two tendencies of inquiry,—one dealing with the objective manifestations of the universe, and the other directed towards the study of the mind. To the former class belong Thales, Anaximander, Anaximenes, Pythagoras, and others that attempted to discover some principle for the explanation of the natural phenomena. To accomplish this end, mathematics, physics, metaphysics, etc., were resorted to. The other great epoch, which may be termed the Renaissance of Greek Philosophy, was conceived by the Supreme Greek thinker, Socrates, who forms the subject thesis of this paper.
Socrates was the father of psychology and the grandfather of modern psychopathology. He was the first one that attempted to study man from the point of view of subjectivity. In the words of Snyder, "In Socrates, the human mind burst forth into knowing itself as thinking."[2.] And Zeller very thoughtfully remarks: "The interests of philosophy being thus turned away from the outer world and directed towards man and his moral nature, and man only regarding things as true and binding of the truth of which he was convinced himself by intellectual research, there appears necessarily in Socrates a deeper importance attached to the personality of the thinker."[3.] In Phaedrus, Socrates speaks: "I am a lover of knowledge, and in the cities I can learn from men; but the fields can teach me nothing."[4.] Although Aristophanes pictures Socrates in the clouds as preaching natural philosophy, yet there is no authentic record of this.
The source of information regarding the biography of Socrates and his philosophy comes from two authors, Xenophon and Plato. The former portrays him as a moral philosopher and in his book, Memorabilia, he seems to eulogize his master. The latter however presents him as a thinker, and it is maintained by many critics that Plato put into the mouth of Socrates his own ideas. It is lamentable that this great philosopher committed nothing of his monumental work in writing.
THE PERSONALITY OF SOCRATES
It is difficult to construct a biographic sketch of Socrates in a chronological and systematic order. He was born in the year 469 B. C. His father was Sophroniscus, a sculptor, and his mother Phaenarete, a midwife. He followed his father's vocation and it is believed that he showed poor skill in the profession. We know nothing of his early intellectual and moral development. Since he was bred in Athens, he most probably received the usual education peculiar to that age. He was a soldier and took part in military campaigns and wars. It is maintained that in military life he displayed considerable bravery, endurance and fortitude. The exact date of his appearance in public arena is difficult to ascertain, however, "in the traditions of his followers he is almost uniformly represented as an old, or as a gray-headed man."[5.]