Socrates
Greek philosopher of Athens, c. 470 BC–399 BC. 2 explained quotes.
The popular summary of Socrates' wisdom: he was wiser than others only because he knew the limits of his knowledge. The exact phrase is a later compression of what Plato wrote.
Read the full explanation →At his trial, Socrates refuses to stop questioning people about how to live, saying a life without such questioning is not worth living for a human being. He chose death over silence.
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About Socrates
Socrates taught in the streets and marketplaces of Athens by asking questions, and he wrote nothing himself. Almost everything we know about his ideas comes from his students, above all Plato, and from the playwright Aristophanes, who mocked him.
In 399 BC an Athenian jury convicted him of impiety and corrupting the young, and he was executed by drinking hemlock. Plato’s account of his defense speech, the Apology, is the source of his most famous lines.
More lines by Socrates
Short quotes checked against their sources.
- “The hour of departure has arrived, and we go our ways—I to die, and you to live. Which is better God only knows.”Plato, Apology (Jowett translation)