How Did Socrates Influence Minoan Culture

Greece is firmly rooted in its past. The history of Greece shaped the way the country is today. The Greek civilization began on an Aegean island of Crete about 3000 B.C.E (World Book 538). This culture was known as the Minoan culture. However, in 2000 B.C.E, villages began to develop in the mainland of Greece. These villagers called themselves Mycenaeans, after the powerful town of Mycenae in the Peloponnesus. The Mycenaean’s were in contact with the Minoan culture on Crete and adopted some aspects of their culture, such as their system of writing. Tragically, shortly after 1200 B.C.E, Mycenae and most other settlements in the Peloponnesus were mysteriously destroyed. Till this day no one really knows what happened to them. Soon, a group of …show more content…
His name was Socrates. He became the “father” of philosophy. A Roman thinker, Cicero, said this about Socrates, “Socrates was the first to call philosophy down from the sky.” (Sacks, 319) Socrates was born in the midst of the Athenian Golden Age, to a middle class sculptor Sophroniskos. Even as a young boy Socrates despised the emphasis on physics and science and would rather the time be spent talking about ethics. As he was growing up, Socrates served as a foot soldier in the Peloponnesian war. Socrates had many ideas that were new to Greece. He taught that happiness comes from living a life of moral virtue and that and that an evildoer in committing a sin, harms his or her own soul. Socrates greatly influenced his student Plato, who went on to create an elaborate theory of reality and system of ethics. Socrates is probably most famous for coming up with a revolutionary idea, called the Socratic Method. This method consisted of Socrates asking questions to the person who came to him with his own problem. Through Socrates questions, this man would figure out his answer to is original problem by himself. Therefore, not only would he get the answer to his problem, but he would find out more about himself in the process. However, Socrates life came to a sad ending. One of Socrates students, Kritias, tired to abolish Athens government in 403 B.C.E. This led to Socrates being prosecuted for corrupting the youth. At his trial, Socrates was found guilty by 501 Athenian judges. (Sacks, 319) Socrates was given the option to die by poison or he would have to flee Athens and never return. Socrates boldly said that he would rather die. Socrates then discussed the soul’s immortality with his students, including Plato, and drank hemlock, a deadly poison. He died in 399 B.C.E at the age of