Philosophers and Government Authority

From the beginning of philosophy with the early Greeks, thinkers regularly get in trouble with the government to which they are subject. One of the continuing areas of interest in the history of philosophy is politics. Socrates claims philosophy begins at the point when assumptions and ideas are challenged. Philosophers question the methods and manners by which they are ruled. Consequently political philosophers are at risk of getting in trouble because of challenging authority. A continuing theme in Durant's work is the frequency with which philosophers risk getting in trouble with their government

Socrates is the first martyr of philosophy. He is condemned by the government to drink poisonous hemlock at the age of seventy in 399 B.C. Ironically, he is condemned for proclaiming the rights and necessity of free thought and its value to the state. He calls himself "the old gadfly" but opponents...