Famous Men of Greece · Ch. XXI · Unit 7: Socrates, Xenophon and Thebes
26. Socrates
Goal: Your child can describe how Socrates taught by asking questions and why he is remembered as one of the wisest men who ever lived.
You'll need
- A notebook or paper and colored pencils
- Your timeline (a long strip of paper on the wall, or a notebook page)
What's in the book
Socrates, a sculptor's son and a brave soldier, teaches free in the streets of Athens by asking questions. His enemies, and a comic play by Aristophanes, turn people against him; he is condemned to drink hemlock, and dies calmly among his friends (399 B.C.). Plato carries on his work. The chapter ends with the painters Zeuxis and Parrhasius.
The lesson, step by step
Hook
Ask your child a "Socrates question" and keep asking "why?" gently: What makes a good friend? Why? Is a person who is good only when someone is watching really good?
SaySocrates taught just like this. He asked questions.
Read the chapter together
Read pages 186–195 aloud, or let your child read and help with the hard names. The middle part tells of his trial and death. It is told calmly, and the book admires his courage. Read it slowly.
Narration
Close the book. Ask your child to tell the story back in their own words, from the beginning. Don't correct as they go; just listen. If they get stuck, use a prompt:
- What did Socrates look like? What was he like inside?
- Where was his "school," and what did he charge?
- Why did some people dislike him?
- How did Socrates face his death?
- Who won the contest between Zeuxis and Parrhasius, and how?
Talk it over
Ask:
1. Why did Socrates stay poor?
2. What did "one of the worst young men of Athens" say about him? What does it tell you?
3. What did Socrates mean when he said, "You cannot bury Socrates"?
Remember it
"I have often noticed, Xanthippe, that rain comes after thunder."
"What!" said Socrates, "would you have me die guilty?"
Add "399 B.C.: death of Socrates" to the timeline.
The painters
Read the painters' contest again for fun.
"I yield," said Zeuxis. "It is easy to see who is the better artist. I have deceived birds. Parrhasius has deceived an artist."
Your child might try to draw something that looks real enough to "fool" someone, like a curtain or a fly.
Afterwards
Play the question game at a meal: one person asks "What is...?" (courage, kindness, fairness), and everyone keeps asking "why?" or "is that always true?"
Tip
If the poison and death trouble your child, focus on how calm and kind Socrates was, and on Plato's words, "the wisest and the best."
Answers to the book's problems
1. He never charged anyone for his teaching. 2. "When I am with Socrates I am ashamed." Socrates could help even a bad young man want to be better. 3. His body could be buried, but not his real self; he believed death was the beginning of a nobler life.
Worked out for this site from the scan. If a number in your copy differs, trust the book.