Socrates

In my opinion, Socrates seems to display two strategies when he is engaged in discussions within his dialogues. The first is to show that he interlocutor has contradictory beliefs and the second is for the other to appear ignorant. These methods cause two dilemmas, the first being one of ignorance as he constantly claims to know nothing at certain times yet on the otherhand, he believes he has knowledge of the truth. The second strategy …

…own. If these challenges are met, the interlocutor is involved in a process that results in the formation not only of new opinions, but of new values--the values of critical reason, the principles of the rational self. But when the interlocutor withdraws from the results of the inquiry, by refusing to persist in self-examination or by failing to follow the Socratic model of concerning oneself with the "common good" of truth, the method is useless.