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Socratic Method: The Elenchus
ThemeGrill ⋮ ⋮ 8/22/2021
What is a Socratic Method? The Socratic Method is a purposeful questioning of someone to test the
coherence, consistency, and credibility of what he said.
The basic form is a series of questions formulated as tests of logic and fact intended to help a person
critically understand his beliefs about issues and explore definitions and reasons.
Socratic Method
The term “elenchus” is Hellenistic Greek for inquiry or cross-examination. It is a kind of inquiry or
examination that discloses people to themselves, making them see what their opinions really amount to.
(Read: Evaluate truth from opinions in different situations using the methods of philosophizing)
The Socratic Method or method of elenchus is a form of logical refutation. This method called the elenchus
refers to the Socratic method of stimulating critical thinking and drawing out ideas and underlying
presuppositions.
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This philosophical method (also called elenctic method or Socratic debate) is used to refute an argument. It
is a type of cooperative argumentative dialogue between individuals, based on asking and answering
questions to extract truth.
Socratic Method: leading to wisdom and truth
In his lectures Filipino Philosophy professorand textbook author Jensen DG. Mañebog explains that
Socratic Method leads to wisdom and truth for it asks a series of incisive questions to determine whether a
supposed knowledge could rationally be justified, defended, and accepted with clarity and logical
consistency. In many ways, both Logic and Critical Thinking use this Socratic Method.
The elenchus intends not just to realize satisfactory definitions of things such as virtues, for it also has a
moral reformatory purpose, for recurring elenctic philosophizing makes people more virtuous and happier.
The Socratic Method is a dialectical method introduced by Socrates as midwifery (maieutics) as it is used to
bring out definitions implicit in people’s beliefs, or to help them improve or enhance their understanding. The
elenchus is designed so that a person will come to realize what his opinions, no matter how long-held and
deep-seated they may be, really amount to.
The Socratic Method is deemed as a hypothesis elimination as better hypotheses are discovered by
progressively identifying and rejecting those that lead to contradictions. The Socratic Method can be used to
examine commonly held truths that shape beliefs to ascertain their consistency with other beliefs.
Socratic Method: Examples and applications
One must remember that the Socratic Method is an open system of philosophical inquiry. An example is
when a person methodically interrogates somebody about his beliefs or claims from many vantage points.
The Socratic Method makes philosophical inquiry a common human enterprise, open to every man. A
person using the elenchus does not demand allegiance to a certain philosophical dogma, rather, he uses
common sense and common speech.
Historically, Critical Thinking as a discipline traces its roots in analytic philosophy—in this
reek Socratic tradition. To do this Socratic Method, a person asks probing questions to determine whether
someone’s claims to knowledge could be rationally justified with clarity and logical consistency.
For more examples and applications of the Socratic Method, read Logic as a Branch of Philosophy:
Featuring Critical Thinking and Debate and How to Improve Critical Thinking: Featuring Logic and Common
Sense.
Copyright © 2013-present by Prof. Jensen DG. Mañebog and MyInfoBasket.com
Note: Teachers may share this as a reading assignment of their students. For other free lectures like this
(especially for students), visit Homepage: Introduction to the Philosophy of the Human Person
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*Free lectures on the subject Pambungad sa Pilosopiya ng Tao
Read also: Reasoning and Debate: A Handbook and a Textbook by Jensen DG. Mañebog
Philosophy of Man Articles:
Distinguish Opinion from Truth
Do a philosophical reflection on a concrete situation from a holistic perspective
Realize the Value of Doing Philosophy in Obtaining a Broad Perspective on Life
Distinguish a Holistic Perspective from a Partial Point of View (Holism vs Partial Perspective)
The Blind Men and the Elephant: Attaining a Holistic Perspective
Mga Libreng Lektura para sa Pambungad sa Pilosopiya ng Tao:
Nakikilala ang pagkakaiba ng katotohanan sa opinyon
Karanasan na nagpapakita ng pagkakaiba ng katotohanan sa opinyon lamang
Ang Pagkakaiba ng Pangkabuuang Pananaw at Pananaw ng mga Bahagi Lamang
Ang Halaga ng Pamimilosopiya sa Pagkakaroon ng Malawakang pananaw
Pagmumuni-muni sa Suliranin sa Pilosopikong Paraan at Pamimilosopiya sa Buhay
Also read: From Socrates to Mill: An Analysis of Prominent Ethical Theories by Jensen DG. Mañebog
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