Socrates of Athens

We know little about Socrates. Historians believe he lived between 469 and 399 BC. He lived as an Athenian citizen who wandered around Athens and challenged its most significant citizens on philosophical matters. What is known of Socrates is known second-hand and much of the information is disputed. However, his two main chroniclers, Xenophon and Plato, do agree on a number of matters, especially on the details of his famous trial and death where the Athenians accused him of failing to worship the gods recognized by the state, introducing new deities and corrupting the youth. The trial is perhaps the most significant part of Socrates' life because it shows his willingness to die for what he believed to be right and to become philosophy's first martyr.

Socrates lived the paradigmatic life of the philosopher and is widely believed to have cared for nothing but the truth. He had...