The Socratic Method cover art

The Socratic Method

A Practitioner’s Handbook

Preview

Try Premium Plus free
1 credit a month to buy any audiobook in our entire collection.
Access to thousands of additional audiobooks and Originals from the Plus Catalogue.
Member-only deals & discounts.
Auto-renews at $16.45/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

The Socratic Method

By: Ward Farnsworth
Narrated by: John Lescault
Try Premium Plus free

$16.45 per month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy Now for $27.99

Buy Now for $27.99

Confirm Purchase
Pay using voucher balance (if applicable) then card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions Of Use and Privacy Notice and authorise Audible to charge your designated credit card or another available credit card on file.
Cancel

About this listen

A thinking person’s guide to a better life. Ward Farnsworth explains what the Socratic method is, how it works, and why it matters more than ever in our time. Easy to grasp yet challenging to master, the method will change the way you think about life’s big questions.

About 2,500 years ago, Plato wrote a set of dialogues that depict Socrates in conversation. The way Socrates asks questions, and the reasons why, amount to a whole way of thinking. This is the Socratic method - one of humanity’s great achievements. More than a technique, the method is an ethic of patience, inquiry, humility, and doubt. It is an aid to better thinking, and a remedy for bad habits of mind, whether in law, politics, the classroom, or tackling life’s big questions at the kitchen table.

Drawing on hundreds of quotations, this book explains what the Socratic method is and how to use it. Chapters include “Question and Answer”, “Ignorance”, and “Socrates and the Stoics”. Socratic philosophy is still startling after all these years because it is an approach to asking hard questions and chasing after them. It is a route to wisdom and a way of thinking about wisdom. With Farnsworth as your guide, the ideas of Socrates are easier to understand than ever and accessible to anyone.

As Farnsworth achieved with The Practicing Stoic and Farnsworth’s Classical English Style, ideas of old are made new and vital again. This book is for those coming to philosophy the way Socrates did - as the everyday activity of making sense out of life and how to live it - and for anyone who wants to know what he said about doing that better.

©2021 Ward Farnsworth (P)2021 Blackstone Publishing
Ethics & Morality Movements Stoicism Inspiring Wisdom Greek Philosophy

What listeners say about The Socratic Method

Average Customer Ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    42
  • 4 Stars
    18
  • 3 Stars
    2
  • 2 Stars
    1
  • 1 Stars
    0
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    39
  • 4 Stars
    16
  • 3 Stars
    2
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    1
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    41
  • 4 Stars
    12
  • 3 Stars
    4
  • 2 Stars
    1
  • 1 Stars
    0

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Socrates for Millennials

Genuinely interesting and well explained (as can be possible without being in a classroom). Surprisingly disappointed for it to end. The final 12 'rules' were particularly excellent and useful 'takeaways'.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Very informative!

A great book with very detailed information. I am just beginning my journey into the world of philosophy and would recommend this to anyone starting down the same path. The narration was a little monotone and really engaging. I will definitely be listening to it again though.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Good for falling asleep

This book was quiet enjoyable, I didn’t not take in much of the information, as I did use it to fall asleep. The things that where talked about in this book where not that interesting, but It was interesting enough that If you where to read it in full consciousness it would be a good read.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

4 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Great read if you’re ready for it.

This book didn’t say any more than it needed to. Great read if you’re ready for it.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Definitely recommend

Well thought out and presented. This is a really good exposition on The Socratic Method. Practical. And I agree with his interpretations. I like that he refers to Gregory Vlastos a lot. Sound thinking and definitely progresses the study of this mysterious practice.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars

bruh, leave the footnotes to the physical copy.

yeah some thought provoking stuff peppered in here but the constant footnotes made it hard going. leave that kind of stuff for the hard copy pls.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

In the spirit of reconciliation, Audible acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of country throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community. We pay our respect to their elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today.