August 30, 2024 • 8 mins
We all know major public figures who drive us crazy because they loudly share opinions we don’t agree with. But that’s democracy, right? So, the iconic Greek philosopher Socrates was exactly that kind of big mouth 2,400 years ago in Athens, where democracy was just being originated. Problem is, he angered the wrong big shots and wound up being executed in a really unusual way.
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
So what about a major public figure who's sort of
a big mouth, but who has to be allowed to
say what he or she thinks. It happens all the time, right,
that's democracy. Well, what about a guy who most of
us have heard of, who's an icon noted as the
father of Western philosophy. We're talking about Socrates, who was
so stubborn about being right he calmly faced execution even
(00:23):
when he could have escaped. I'm Patty Steele. The bizarre
life and really bizarre death of a know it all genius.
Next on the backstory. The backstory is back. Even if
you know very little about the Greek philosophers, you probably
heard of Socrates. He was a total character, and that
(00:44):
wound up costing him his life. Socrates was born in
ancient Athens sometime around four sixty nine BCE. Athens was
described as the beating heart of Greece, and Socrates came
from a pretty affluent family. That may explain his broad education.
He was taught reading, writing, history, gymnastics, poetry, music, but
(01:05):
it also might explain his arrogance. He believed he was right,
and he stood up for what he believed in really
didn't give a damn what anybody else thought? What did
he look like? Well, if you imagine him as an
old guy with a beard in a toga surrounded by
a bunch of young guys listening to him spout deep stuff,
you'd be right. But he was more complicated than that.
(01:27):
He really really didn't care what anybody else thought of him.
He wasn't an attractive guy. His closest friends and students
described him as having a flat, turned up nose, bulging eyes,
and a big belly. In fact, they joked about his looks,
calling him ugly, But Socrates didn't care what they thought,
and really didn't care about his own appearance or even
(01:48):
his personal comfort. He was noted for being filthy. He
hardly ever bathed, always walked barefoot, and owned only one old,
crummy coat. He didn't care much about eating, drinking, or
even sex. While Socrates was attracted to young guys, which
was pretty common and accepted in ancient Greece, he mostly
(02:08):
stayed away from sexual relationships with him because, as his
student Plato says, he was more interested in educating their souls.
So what was he teaching them? Well, he believed that
you should constantly be forced to confront the things you
took for granted in life. Now. The problem is, he
thought it was his responsibility to force people to confront
(02:30):
their own beliefs, and there were a whole lot of
folks who hated him for that. His questions humiliated them,
particularly the big shots, who didn't want answer to anyone,
much less of filthy street philosopher. Think about it, You're
an Athenian, confident in your beliefs about virtue, justice, and
the gods, and here comes this kind of scruffy old
(02:52):
guy asking you to explain your ideas, forcing you and
others to see that you've got it all wrong. It's
obvious that you don't have all the answers, and that
makes you angry. Socrates didn't just stop it questioning ordinary folks.
He took his philosophical sledgehammer to the beliefs of Athens'
most powerful and respected figures. He showed their ignorance, not
(03:16):
trying to be a jerk, though he was, but because
he believed that admitting one's ignorance was the first step
toward real wisdom. But as you can imagine, that didn't
exactly make him popular among those big shots. So three
of them decided to put Socrates on trial the charges
corrupting the youth of Athens and impiety were not buying
(03:38):
into accepted beliefs about the gods. What exactly did corrupting
the youth mean? Well, he had a following of young
men who were drawn to Socrates because of his unusual
ideas and also his ability to make the big shots
in Athens look stupid. The elders thought Socrates was leading
these young guys astray, undermining Athenian society. They also saw
(04:01):
him as a threat to the traditional worship of the
gods and so to grease itself. The jury found him guilty,
mostly because he didn't really try to explain himself. He
simply defended his opinions intensely. Now here's where it gets weird.
In Athens, a condemned person could choose between two sentences,
(04:21):
one offered by the prosecution and one by the defense.
Socrates could choose his own punishment. I mean, he could
have asked for permission to leave Athens and live in exile,
which would have saved his life, but his ego wouldn't
let him do that. The only thing he suggested, jokingly
was that they give him free meals every day for
the rest of his life in recognition of his value
(04:44):
to Athens and honor usually reserved for Olympic champions. Duh,
that was a no go. Then he suggested a small fine,
also a no go. It was too little, too late,
so at the end of the day the jurors decided
on the death penalty. They decided he would have to
drink a cup of poison hemlock to get the job done.
(05:05):
That would gradually paralyze his body and stop his heart.
Socrates still could have escaped. His friends offered to bribe
the guards and get him out of the city, but no,
he refused. To Socrates, the law was the law, and
while he thought his conviction was bogus, he wasn't about
to undermine the legal system he lived under his whole life.
(05:26):
He saw his death as a final lesson, a demonstration
of his commitment to his principles. Socrates spent his last
day in prison and the hours before his execution with
his friends and students. They were beside themselves, begging him
to escape, but he stayed calm, discussing philosophy until the
very end. Finally, Socrates took the cup of hemlock, drank
(05:51):
it without any hesitation, and then continued talking until the
poison took effect. His final words were to remind a
friend to offer a sacrifice to the god of healing,
perhaps a final ironic nod to his belief that death
was actually a kind of cure. So why was Socrates
forced to kill himself. It wasn't only because he was
(06:14):
disliked by some powerful people. It was also because he
represented something that really unsettles powerful people even today, not
just the Athenian big shots. It's the power of questioning
and critical thinking. He challenged the status quo. His questions,
his refusal to conform, and his influence over young people
(06:36):
made him the perfect scapegoat for the city's anxieties. What's
interesting is what was meant to silence Socrates only turned
up the noise. His death made him a martyr for
freethinking and questioning, and a symbol of the struggle against
ignorance and repression. His teachings were amplified by his disciples
(06:56):
like Plato and later Aristotle. So yet, you can have
a big mouth and it can cost you. But if
it's based on the search for truth and wisdom, maybe
it's worth it. Socrates life and his death teach us
the value of questioning even when it feels dangerous, and
what we realize is that a lot of times the
(07:18):
most important questions have uncomfortable but really important answers. Hope
you like the Backstory with Patty Steele. I would love
it if you would subscribe or follow for free to
(07:41):
get new episodes delivered automatically, and feel free to dm
me if you have a story you'd like me to cover.
On Facebook, It's Patty Steele and on Instagram Real Patty Steele.
I'm Patty Steele. The Backstory is a production of iHeartMedia,
Premier Networks, the Elvis Duran Group, and Steel Trap Productions.
(08:02):
Our producer is Doug Fraser. Our writer Jake Kushner. We
have new episodes every Tuesday and Friday. Feel free to
reach out to me with comments and even story suggestions
on Instagram at Real Patty Steele and on Facebook at
Patty Steele. Thanks for listening to the Backstory with Patty Steele.
The pieces of history you didn't know you needed to
(08:22):
know
So what about a major public figure who's sort of
a big mouth, but who has to be allowed to
say what he or she thinks. It happens all the time, right,
that's democracy. Well, what about a guy who most of
us have heard of, who's an icon noted as the
father of Western philosophy. We're talking about Socrates, who was
so stubborn about being right he calmly faced execution even
(00:23):
when he could have escaped. I'm Patty Steele. The bizarre
life and really bizarre death of a know it all genius.
Next on the backstory. The backstory is back. Even if
you know very little about the Greek philosophers, you probably
heard of Socrates. He was a total character, and that
(00:44):
wound up costing him his life. Socrates was born in
ancient Athens sometime around four sixty nine BCE. Athens was
described as the beating heart of Greece, and Socrates came
from a pretty affluent family. That may explain his broad education.
He was taught reading, writing, history, gymnastics, poetry, music, but
(01:05):
it also might explain his arrogance. He believed he was right,
and he stood up for what he believed in really
didn't give a damn what anybody else thought? What did
he look like? Well, if you imagine him as an
old guy with a beard in a toga surrounded by
a bunch of young guys listening to him spout deep stuff,
you'd be right. But he was more complicated than that.
(01:27):
He really really didn't care what anybody else thought of him.
He wasn't an attractive guy. His closest friends and students
described him as having a flat, turned up nose, bulging eyes,
and a big belly. In fact, they joked about his looks,
calling him ugly, But Socrates didn't care what they thought,
and really didn't care about his own appearance or even
(01:48):
his personal comfort. He was noted for being filthy. He
hardly ever bathed, always walked barefoot, and owned only one old,
crummy coat. He didn't care much about eating, drinking, or
even sex. While Socrates was attracted to young guys, which
was pretty common and accepted in ancient Greece, he mostly
(02:08):
stayed away from sexual relationships with him because, as his
student Plato says, he was more interested in educating their souls.
So what was he teaching them? Well, he believed that
you should constantly be forced to confront the things you
took for granted in life. Now. The problem is, he
thought it was his responsibility to force people to confront
(02:30):
their own beliefs, and there were a whole lot of
folks who hated him for that. His questions humiliated them,
particularly the big shots, who didn't want answer to anyone,
much less of filthy street philosopher. Think about it, You're
an Athenian, confident in your beliefs about virtue, justice, and
the gods, and here comes this kind of scruffy old
(02:52):
guy asking you to explain your ideas, forcing you and
others to see that you've got it all wrong. It's
obvious that you don't have all the answers, and that
makes you angry. Socrates didn't just stop it questioning ordinary folks.
He took his philosophical sledgehammer to the beliefs of Athens'
most powerful and respected figures. He showed their ignorance, not
(03:16):
trying to be a jerk, though he was, but because
he believed that admitting one's ignorance was the first step
toward real wisdom. But as you can imagine, that didn't
exactly make him popular among those big shots. So three
of them decided to put Socrates on trial the charges
corrupting the youth of Athens and impiety were not buying
(03:38):
into accepted beliefs about the gods. What exactly did corrupting
the youth mean? Well, he had a following of young
men who were drawn to Socrates because of his unusual
ideas and also his ability to make the big shots
in Athens look stupid. The elders thought Socrates was leading
these young guys astray, undermining Athenian society. They also saw
(04:01):
him as a threat to the traditional worship of the
gods and so to grease itself. The jury found him guilty,
mostly because he didn't really try to explain himself. He
simply defended his opinions intensely. Now here's where it gets weird.
In Athens, a condemned person could choose between two sentences,
(04:21):
one offered by the prosecution and one by the defense.
Socrates could choose his own punishment. I mean, he could
have asked for permission to leave Athens and live in exile,
which would have saved his life, but his ego wouldn't
let him do that. The only thing he suggested, jokingly
was that they give him free meals every day for
the rest of his life in recognition of his value
(04:44):
to Athens and honor usually reserved for Olympic champions. Duh,
that was a no go. Then he suggested a small fine,
also a no go. It was too little, too late,
so at the end of the day the jurors decided
on the death penalty. They decided he would have to
drink a cup of poison hemlock to get the job done.
(05:05):
That would gradually paralyze his body and stop his heart.
Socrates still could have escaped. His friends offered to bribe
the guards and get him out of the city, but no,
he refused. To Socrates, the law was the law, and
while he thought his conviction was bogus, he wasn't about
to undermine the legal system he lived under his whole life.
(05:26):
He saw his death as a final lesson, a demonstration
of his commitment to his principles. Socrates spent his last
day in prison and the hours before his execution with
his friends and students. They were beside themselves, begging him
to escape, but he stayed calm, discussing philosophy until the
very end. Finally, Socrates took the cup of hemlock, drank
(05:51):
it without any hesitation, and then continued talking until the
poison took effect. His final words were to remind a
friend to offer a sacrifice to the god of healing,
perhaps a final ironic nod to his belief that death
was actually a kind of cure. So why was Socrates
forced to kill himself. It wasn't only because he was
(06:14):
disliked by some powerful people. It was also because he
represented something that really unsettles powerful people even today, not
just the Athenian big shots. It's the power of questioning
and critical thinking. He challenged the status quo. His questions,
his refusal to conform, and his influence over young people
(06:36):
made him the perfect scapegoat for the city's anxieties. What's
interesting is what was meant to silence Socrates only turned
up the noise. His death made him a martyr for
freethinking and questioning, and a symbol of the struggle against
ignorance and repression. His teachings were amplified by his disciples
(06:56):
like Plato and later Aristotle. So yet, you can have
a big mouth and it can cost you. But if
it's based on the search for truth and wisdom, maybe
it's worth it. Socrates life and his death teach us
the value of questioning even when it feels dangerous, and
what we realize is that a lot of times the
(07:18):
most important questions have uncomfortable but really important answers. Hope
you like the Backstory with Patty Steele. I would love
it if you would subscribe or follow for free to
(07:41):
get new episodes delivered automatically, and feel free to dm
me if you have a story you'd like me to cover.
On Facebook, It's Patty Steele and on Instagram Real Patty Steele.
I'm Patty Steele. The Backstory is a production of iHeartMedia,
Premier Networks, the Elvis Duran Group, and Steel Trap Productions.
(08:02):
Our producer is Doug Fraser. Our writer Jake Kushner. We
have new episodes every Tuesday and Friday. Feel free to
reach out to me with comments and even story suggestions
on Instagram at Real Patty Steele and on Facebook at
Patty Steele. Thanks for listening to the Backstory with Patty Steele.
The pieces of history you didn't know you needed to
(08:22):
know
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