The Socratic Method
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15
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Average rating5
"The Socratic method is one of the timeless inventions of the ancient world. It is a path to wisdom and a way to think more intelligently about questions large or small. It is a technique for teaching others and for talking to yourself. It is an antidote to stupidity, to irrationality, and to social media. It is easy to understand but challenging to master. It is useful for everyone. This book explains the Socratic method in detail: what it is, where it came from, and how to carry it out. The chapters teach the elements of the method step by step with examples from Plato's dialogues. They illustrate how to create Socratic questions of your own. They show how the teachings of Socrates produced the philosophies of Stoicism and Skepticism. The book also explains how the Socratic method can be put to work in the classroom, and it offers Socratic rules of engagement for talking about politics and other hard things. The Socratic Method is a complete guide to the practical use of a great idea"--
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This book will require me to ruminate further to let the ideas and methods sink in. Socratic thinking is definitely lacking in today's world. I myself fall guilty in breaking some of the rules of engagement listed and have some work to do. Some chapters were better than others, but the ones that really shined changed my view and perspective on the world quite drastically. The rules of engagement, finding principles and their implications, using an elenchus to have someone see their own inconsistencies, are some of the ideas I found the most helpful. It will take some time and review to increase my understanding and application in Socratic thinking, but this book has showed me the importance of doing so and the good that can come from it.
