FUBAR
Footballguy
Mickey Mouse?
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World's Greatest Draft (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter timschochet
- Start date
Mario Kart
Footballguy
I knew it was going to be a long shot, but I would have liked to get Confucius or Darwin at the end of round 2. Great picks in my mind.Just in case it does get to my picks... I won't be around until ~10:00 pm central time tonight. Leaving shortly.
Uncle Humuna
Footballguy
mad sweeney
Footballguy
This is who I thought was a #1 before the Greeks started going off the board. Someone else pointed out about the number of people living under his philosophies. But like I said, wrong hemisphere.
timschochet
Footballguy
New rule: the first selection in each round must be Chinese (and ancient).
J/K. If you post two or more categories for your pick, I will always place them in the first category. It's up to you to instruct me to switch later, if you want.
J/K. If you post two or more categories for your pick, I will always place them in the first category. It's up to you to instruct me to switch later, if you want.
FUBAR
Footballguy
No. Questioning the faith makes one's faith stronger. At least it does for me. As a kid, when your parents told you to brush your teeth, did you ever question why? After learning the reason, didn't it make you want to brush? Instead of blind faith, IMO God wants us to look at everything and choose to follow, it's why he gave us freedom of choice. I don't mean doubting in the end and never choosing to follow, but questions are a good thing.
FUBAR
Footballguy
He tempted Christ. He puts hot women out here to make us question our wedding vows. He put the snake in the garden to tempt XXX.
mad sweeney
Footballguy
I thought we eliminated the myths/legends category.
larry_boy_44
Footballguy
God didn't tempt Christ personally...but, yes, those are other examples of God allowing us to be tempted/allowing things to happen to cause us to doubt...
BobbyLayne
Footballguy
larry_boy_44
Footballguy
the story is a myth, but there is no evidence that there was no person by that name that the story is about...
Mario Kart
Footballguy
Vin Diesel, maybe?
Arsenal of Doom
Footballguy
No Spotlighting!!
Mario Kart
Footballguy
Fixxxed
flysack
Footballguy
Mister CIA
Footballguy
I was kicking myself for missing out on this pick at 1.18.
Again, the write-up is weak here - what value can my commentary possibly add to his man's legacy?. I'm just here to drop names for now.
2.02 - Siddhartha Gautama -or is it Gautama Buddha? I hope I'm not drafting the wrong Ricky Williams .... Religious Figure
WIKI
Again, the write-up is weak here - what value can my commentary possibly add to his man's legacy?. I'm just here to drop names for now.
2.02 - Siddhartha Gautama -or is it Gautama Buddha? I hope I'm not drafting the wrong Ricky Williams .... Religious Figure
WIKI
It's a long wait for the 3.18. Hopefully my personal 1.01 is still available.
higgins
Footballguy
Mister CIA
Footballguy
Will you all settle for man boobs?
FUBAR
Footballguy
BobbyLayne
Footballguy
Coming.......my pick I mean.Will you all settle for man boobs?
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D_House
Footballguy
Darwin and Buddha? Very nice haul.
Abrantes
Footballguy
Great pick. Dodged a bullet, as this was my other consideration for the previous pick.
Last edited by a moderator:
mad sweeney
Footballguy
Another pick I was looking at for 1.10. I really wanted to go East, but in a category with Muhammed and Jesus, he's almost a lock for 3rd. Unless LB wants to put Jesus in the martyr category so he doesn't chance losing out to Muhammed.This is probably the first instance of categories affecting overall value, or at least the biggest.
FUBAR
Footballguy
Agreed. Religious figure with these 3 and leaders with a slew of people are examples of where judging this by categories can lead to a weird draft.
Mister CIA
Footballguy
I'm pleased, with the caveat that neither one will likely be voted top-2 in either category.
Doug B
Footballguy
Going by this rule of thumb on my spreadsheet, as well.
Mister CIA
Footballguy
I had Confucius and one other Easterner queued for consolation.Great pick. Dodged a bullet, as this was my other consideration for the previous pick.
Doug B
Footballguy
The Buddha is an easy top-5 in a draft without categories. Still in all, Mr. CIA does have a lock on a high score in the Religious Figures category.
Doug B
Footballguy
Collecting top-5s ain't a bad strategy for someone drafting from the bottom of the first round.
timschochet
Footballguy
What do Jesus and Buddha have in common? One answer is, the religions that were eventually formed around both of them have always been more popular among other peoples than the original people it was preached to.
Another similarity is that the portrayal of Jesus and Buddha is usually based on the ethnicity of the people worshipping him. Just as Americans of English and German descent have generally worshipped a blue-eyed fair skinned Jesus, Buddha in China is always Chinese.
Another similarity is that the portrayal of Jesus and Buddha is usually based on the ethnicity of the people worshipping him. Just as Americans of English and German descent have generally worshipped a blue-eyed fair skinned Jesus, Buddha in China is always Chinese.
timschochet
Footballguy
As far as categories affecting overall value, making things rather strange: this is one of the reasons we will have public voting as well as category judging. Any apparent inequities that arise from the category judging should correct themselves when people are allowed to vote on the teams.
John Maddens Lunchbox
Footballguy
He was one of the 4 I was deciding between when I chose Alexander. The other 2 are still available.I had another category in mind for Darwin. Just wish I could say what it was
larry_boy_44
Footballguy
he wasn't Chinese?
flysack
Footballguy
He was an Indian prince.
John Maddens Lunchbox
Footballguy
Doug B
Footballguy
John Maddens Lunchbox
Footballguy
Have you got a link for that?Also I think you are either #### stirring or making Gandhi out to be something he isn't responsible for.
When George Washington & Co threw off the British, they're heroes & revolutionaries.
When Gandhi does it he's responsible for tin pot dictators?
Gandhi did it peacefully.
D_House
Footballguy
I'm curious about the category.Not sure why you can't?
John Maddens Lunchbox
Footballguy
Because I think he scores higher in this other category
John Maddens Lunchbox
Footballguy
I'm out for now.
If it gets to 2:08 I'll pick in the morning.
If it gets to 2:08 I'll pick in the morning.
BobbyLayne
Footballguy
When I saw that I was picking 18th, my first thought was it's going to be tough from there.
I had no idea that I would end up with two solid candidates for #1 in category picks after the turn.
2.03 (23rd pick) - Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart - Composer
A child prodigy, Mozart wrote his first symphony when he was eight years old and his first opera at 12. He went on to write some of the most important masterpieces of the Classical era, including symphonies, operas, string quartets and piano music. One of the most significant and influential of all composers of Western classical music. His works are loved by many and are frequently performed.
Eine kleine Nachtmusik is perhaps the most beautiful sound ever know to mankind. Listen and see if you agree:
(born Salzburg, 27 January 1756; died Vienna, 5 December 1791). Son of Leopold Mozart.
He showed musical gifts at a very early age, composing when he was five and when he was six playing before the Bavarian elector and the Austrian empress. Leopold felt that it was proper, and might also be profitable, to exhibit his children's God-given genius (Maria Anna, 'Nannerl', 1751-1829, was a gifted keyboard player): so in mid-1763 the family set out on a tour that took them to Paris and London, visiting numerous courts en route. Mozart astonished his audiences with his precocious skills; he played to the French and English royal families, had his first music published and wrote his earliest symphonies. The family arrived home late in 1766; nine months later they were off again, to Vienna, where hopes of having an opera by Mozart performed were frustrated by intrigues.
They spent 1769 in Salzburg; 1770-73 saw three visits to Italy, where Mozart wrote two operas (Mitridate, Lucio Silla) and a serenata for performance in Milan, and acquainted himself with Italian styles. Summer 1773 saw a further visit to Vienna, probably in the hope of securing a post; there Mozart wrote a set of string quartets and, on his return, wrote a group of symphonies including his two earliest, nos.25 in g Minor and 29 in A, in the regular repertory. Apart from a joumey to Munich for the premiere of his opera La finta giardiniera early in 1775, the period from 1774 to mid-1777 was spent in Salzburg, where Mozart worked as Konzertmeister at the Prince- Archbishop's court; his works of these years include masses, symphonies, all his violin concertos, six piano sonatas, several serenades and divertimentos and his first great piano concerto, K271.
In 1777 the Mozarts, seeing limited opportunity in Salzburg for a composer so hugely gifted, resolved to seek a post elsewhere for Wolfgang. He was sent, with his mother, to Munich and to Mannheim, but was offered no position (though he stayed over four months at Mannheim, composing for piano and flute and falling in love with Aloysia Weber). His father then dispatched him to Paris: there he had minor successes, notably with his Paris Symphony, no.31, deftly designed for the local taste. But prospects there were poor and Leopold ordered him home, where a superior post had been arranged at the court. He returned slowly and alone; his mother had died in Paris. The years 1779-80 were spent in Salzburg, playing in the cathedral and at court, composing sacred works, symphonies, concertos, serenades and dramatic music. But opera remained at the centre of his ambitions, and an opportunity came with a commission for a serious opera for Munich. He went there to compose it late in 1780; his correspondence with Leopold (through whom he communicated with the librettist, in Salzburg) is richly informative about his approach to musical drama. The work, Idomeneo, was a success. In it Mozart depicted serious, heroic emotion with a richness unparalleled elsewhere in his works, with vivid orchestral writing and an abundance of profoundly expressive orchestral recitative.
Mozart was then summoned from Munich to Vienna, where the Salzburg court was in residence on the accession of a new emperor. Fresh from his success, he found himself placed between the valets and the cooks; his resentment towards his employer, exacerbated by the Prince-Archbishop's refusal to let him perform at events the emperor was attending, soon led to conflict, and in May 1781 he resigned, or was kicked out of, his job. He wanted a post at the Imperial court in Vienna, but was content to do freelance work in a city that apparently offered golden opportunities. He made his living over the ensuing years by teaching, by publishing his music, by playing at patrons' houses or in public, by composing to commission (particularly operas); in 1787 he obtained a minor court post as Kammermusicus, which gave him a reasonable salary and required nothing beyond the writing of dance music for court balls. He always earned, by musicians' standards, a good income, and had a carriage and servants; through lavish spending and poor management he suffered times of financial difficulty and had to borrow. In 1782 he married Constanze Weber, Aloysia's younger sister.
In his early years in Vienna, Mozart built up his reputation by publishing (sonatas for piano, some with violin), by playing the piano and, in 1782, by having an opera performed: Die Entführung aus dem Serail, a German Singspiel which went far beyond the usual limits of the tradition with its long, elaborately written songs (hence Emperor Joseph II's famous observation, 'Too many notes, my dear Mozart'). The work was successful and was taken into the repertories of many provincial companies (for which Mozart was not however paid). In these years, too, he wrote six string quartets which he dedicated to the master of the form, Haydn: they are marked not only by their variety of expression but by their complex textures, conceived as four-part discourse, with the musical ideas linked to this freshly integrated treatment of the medium. Haydn told Mozart's father that Mozart was 'the greatest composer known to me in person or by name; he has taste and, what is more, the greatest knowledge of composition'.
In 1782 Mozart embarked on the composition of piano concertos, so that he could appear both as composer and soloist. He wrote 15 before the end of 1786, with early 1784 as the peak of activity. They represent one of his greatest achievements, with their formal mastery, their subtle relationships between piano and orchestra (the wind instruments especially) and their combination of brilliance, lyricism and symphonic growth. In 1786 he wrote the first of his three comic operas with Lorenzo da Ponte as librettist, Le nozze di Figaro: here and in Don Giovanni (given in Prague, 1787) Mozart treats the interplay of social and sexual tensions with keen insight into human character that - as again in the more artificial sexual comedy of Cosi fan tutte (1790) - transcends the comic framework, just as Die Zauberflöte (1791) transcends, with its elements of ritual and allegory about human harmony and enlightenment, the world of the Viennese popular theatre from which it springs.
Mozart lived in Vienna for the rest of his life. He undertook a number of joumeys: to Salzburg in 1783, to introduce his wife to his family; to Prague three times, for concerts and operas; to Berlin in 1789, where he had hopes of a post; to Frankfurt in 1790, to play at coronation celebrations. The last Prague journey was for the premiere of La clemenza di Tito (1791), a traditional serious opera written for coronation celebrations, but composed with a finesse and economy characteristic of Mozart's late music. Instrumental works of these years include some piano sonatas, three string quartets written for the King of Prussia, some string quintets, which include one of his most deeply felt works (K516 in g Minor) and one of his most nobly spacious (K515 in C), and his last four symphonies - one (no.38 in D) composed for Prague in 1786, the others written in 1788 and forming, with the lyricism of no.39 in E-flat, the tragic suggestiveness of no.40 in g Minor and the grandeur of no.41 in C, a climax to his orchestral music. His final works include the Clarinet Concerto and some pieces for masonic lodges (he had been a freemason since 1784; masonic teachings no doubt affected his thinking, and his compositions, in his last years). At his death from a feverish illness whose precise nature has given rise to much speculation (he was not poisoned), he left unfinished the Requiem, his first large-scale work for the church since the c Minor Mass of 1783, also unfinished; a completion by his pupil Süssmayr was long accepted as the standard one but there have been recent attempts to improve on it. Mozart was buried in a Vienna suburb, with little ceremony and in an unmarked grave, in accordance with prevailing custom.
I had no idea that I would end up with two solid candidates for #1 in category picks after the turn.
2.03 (23rd pick) - Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart - Composer
A child prodigy, Mozart wrote his first symphony when he was eight years old and his first opera at 12. He went on to write some of the most important masterpieces of the Classical era, including symphonies, operas, string quartets and piano music. One of the most significant and influential of all composers of Western classical music. His works are loved by many and are frequently performed.
Eine kleine Nachtmusik is perhaps the most beautiful sound ever know to mankind. Listen and see if you agree:
(born Salzburg, 27 January 1756; died Vienna, 5 December 1791). Son of Leopold Mozart.
He showed musical gifts at a very early age, composing when he was five and when he was six playing before the Bavarian elector and the Austrian empress. Leopold felt that it was proper, and might also be profitable, to exhibit his children's God-given genius (Maria Anna, 'Nannerl', 1751-1829, was a gifted keyboard player): so in mid-1763 the family set out on a tour that took them to Paris and London, visiting numerous courts en route. Mozart astonished his audiences with his precocious skills; he played to the French and English royal families, had his first music published and wrote his earliest symphonies. The family arrived home late in 1766; nine months later they were off again, to Vienna, where hopes of having an opera by Mozart performed were frustrated by intrigues.
They spent 1769 in Salzburg; 1770-73 saw three visits to Italy, where Mozart wrote two operas (Mitridate, Lucio Silla) and a serenata for performance in Milan, and acquainted himself with Italian styles. Summer 1773 saw a further visit to Vienna, probably in the hope of securing a post; there Mozart wrote a set of string quartets and, on his return, wrote a group of symphonies including his two earliest, nos.25 in g Minor and 29 in A, in the regular repertory. Apart from a joumey to Munich for the premiere of his opera La finta giardiniera early in 1775, the period from 1774 to mid-1777 was spent in Salzburg, where Mozart worked as Konzertmeister at the Prince- Archbishop's court; his works of these years include masses, symphonies, all his violin concertos, six piano sonatas, several serenades and divertimentos and his first great piano concerto, K271.
In 1777 the Mozarts, seeing limited opportunity in Salzburg for a composer so hugely gifted, resolved to seek a post elsewhere for Wolfgang. He was sent, with his mother, to Munich and to Mannheim, but was offered no position (though he stayed over four months at Mannheim, composing for piano and flute and falling in love with Aloysia Weber). His father then dispatched him to Paris: there he had minor successes, notably with his Paris Symphony, no.31, deftly designed for the local taste. But prospects there were poor and Leopold ordered him home, where a superior post had been arranged at the court. He returned slowly and alone; his mother had died in Paris. The years 1779-80 were spent in Salzburg, playing in the cathedral and at court, composing sacred works, symphonies, concertos, serenades and dramatic music. But opera remained at the centre of his ambitions, and an opportunity came with a commission for a serious opera for Munich. He went there to compose it late in 1780; his correspondence with Leopold (through whom he communicated with the librettist, in Salzburg) is richly informative about his approach to musical drama. The work, Idomeneo, was a success. In it Mozart depicted serious, heroic emotion with a richness unparalleled elsewhere in his works, with vivid orchestral writing and an abundance of profoundly expressive orchestral recitative.
Mozart was then summoned from Munich to Vienna, where the Salzburg court was in residence on the accession of a new emperor. Fresh from his success, he found himself placed between the valets and the cooks; his resentment towards his employer, exacerbated by the Prince-Archbishop's refusal to let him perform at events the emperor was attending, soon led to conflict, and in May 1781 he resigned, or was kicked out of, his job. He wanted a post at the Imperial court in Vienna, but was content to do freelance work in a city that apparently offered golden opportunities. He made his living over the ensuing years by teaching, by publishing his music, by playing at patrons' houses or in public, by composing to commission (particularly operas); in 1787 he obtained a minor court post as Kammermusicus, which gave him a reasonable salary and required nothing beyond the writing of dance music for court balls. He always earned, by musicians' standards, a good income, and had a carriage and servants; through lavish spending and poor management he suffered times of financial difficulty and had to borrow. In 1782 he married Constanze Weber, Aloysia's younger sister.
In his early years in Vienna, Mozart built up his reputation by publishing (sonatas for piano, some with violin), by playing the piano and, in 1782, by having an opera performed: Die Entführung aus dem Serail, a German Singspiel which went far beyond the usual limits of the tradition with its long, elaborately written songs (hence Emperor Joseph II's famous observation, 'Too many notes, my dear Mozart'). The work was successful and was taken into the repertories of many provincial companies (for which Mozart was not however paid). In these years, too, he wrote six string quartets which he dedicated to the master of the form, Haydn: they are marked not only by their variety of expression but by their complex textures, conceived as four-part discourse, with the musical ideas linked to this freshly integrated treatment of the medium. Haydn told Mozart's father that Mozart was 'the greatest composer known to me in person or by name; he has taste and, what is more, the greatest knowledge of composition'.
In 1782 Mozart embarked on the composition of piano concertos, so that he could appear both as composer and soloist. He wrote 15 before the end of 1786, with early 1784 as the peak of activity. They represent one of his greatest achievements, with their formal mastery, their subtle relationships between piano and orchestra (the wind instruments especially) and their combination of brilliance, lyricism and symphonic growth. In 1786 he wrote the first of his three comic operas with Lorenzo da Ponte as librettist, Le nozze di Figaro: here and in Don Giovanni (given in Prague, 1787) Mozart treats the interplay of social and sexual tensions with keen insight into human character that - as again in the more artificial sexual comedy of Cosi fan tutte (1790) - transcends the comic framework, just as Die Zauberflöte (1791) transcends, with its elements of ritual and allegory about human harmony and enlightenment, the world of the Viennese popular theatre from which it springs.
Mozart lived in Vienna for the rest of his life. He undertook a number of joumeys: to Salzburg in 1783, to introduce his wife to his family; to Prague three times, for concerts and operas; to Berlin in 1789, where he had hopes of a post; to Frankfurt in 1790, to play at coronation celebrations. The last Prague journey was for the premiere of La clemenza di Tito (1791), a traditional serious opera written for coronation celebrations, but composed with a finesse and economy characteristic of Mozart's late music. Instrumental works of these years include some piano sonatas, three string quartets written for the King of Prussia, some string quintets, which include one of his most deeply felt works (K516 in g Minor) and one of his most nobly spacious (K515 in C), and his last four symphonies - one (no.38 in D) composed for Prague in 1786, the others written in 1788 and forming, with the lyricism of no.39 in E-flat, the tragic suggestiveness of no.40 in g Minor and the grandeur of no.41 in C, a climax to his orchestral music. His final works include the Clarinet Concerto and some pieces for masonic lodges (he had been a freemason since 1784; masonic teachings no doubt affected his thinking, and his compositions, in his last years). At his death from a feverish illness whose precise nature has given rise to much speculation (he was not poisoned), he left unfinished the Requiem, his first large-scale work for the church since the c Minor Mass of 1783, also unfinished; a completion by his pupil Süssmayr was long accepted as the standard one but there have been recent attempts to improve on it. Mozart was buried in a Vienna suburb, with little ceremony and in an unmarked grave, in accordance with prevailing custom.
HERBERT THE HIPPO
REAL Ultimate Power
2.4 Socrates
In his use of critical reasoning, by his unwavering commitment to truth, and through the vivid example of his own life, fifth-century Athenian Socrates set the standard for all subsequent Western philosophy. Since he left no literary legacy of his own, we are dependent upon contemporary writers like Aristophanes and Xenophon for our information about his life and work. As a pupil of Archelaus during his youth, Socrates showed a great deal of interest in the scientific theories of Anaxagoras, but he later abandoned inquiries into the physical world for a dedicated investigation of the development of moral character. Having served with some distinction as a soldier at Delium and Amphipolis during the Peloponnesian War, Socrates dabbled in the political turmoil that consumed Athens after the War, then retired from active life to work as a stonemason and to raise his children with his wife, Xanthippe. After inheriting a modest fortune from his father, the sculptor Sophroniscus, Socrates used his marginal financial independence as an opportunity to give full-time attention to inventing the practice of philosophical dialogue.
For the rest of his life, Socrates devoted himself to free-wheeling discussion with the aristocratic young citizens of Athens, insistently questioning their unwarranted confidence in the truth of popular opinions, even though he often offered them no clear alternative teaching. Unlike the professional Sophists of the time, Socrates pointedly declined to accept payment for his work with students, but despite (or, perhaps, because) of this lofty disdain for material success, many of them were fanatically loyal to him. Their parents, however, were often displeased with his influence on their offspring, and his earlier association with opponents of the democratic regime had already made him a controversial political figure. Although the amnesty of 405 forestalled direct prosecution for his political activities, an Athenian jury found other charges—corrupting the youth and interfering with the religion of the city—upon which to convict Socrates, and they sentenced him to death in 399 B.C.E. Accepting this outcome with remarkable grace, Socrates drank hemlock and died in the company of his friends and disciples.
Our best sources of information about Socrates's philosophical views are the early dialogues of his student Plato, who attempted there to provide a faithful picture of the methods and teachings of the master. (Although Socrates also appears as a character in the later dialogues of Plato, these writings more often express philosophical positions Plato himself developed long after Socrates's death.) In the Socratic dialogues, his extended conversations with students, statesmen, and friends invariably aim at understanding and achieving virtue {Gk. areth [aretê]} through the careful application of a dialectical method that employs critical inquiry to undermine the plausibility of widely-held doctrines. Destroying the illusion that we already comprehend the world perfectly and honestly accepting the fact of our own ignorance, Socrates believed, are vital steps toward our acquisition of genuine knowledge, by discovering universal definitions of the key concepts governing human life.
Interacting with an arrogantly confident young man in Euqufrwn (Euthyphro), for example, Socrates systematically refutes the superficial notion of piety (moral rectitude) as doing whatever is pleasing to the gods. Efforts to define morality by reference to any external authority, he argued, inevitably founder in a significant logical dilemma about the origin of the good. Plato's Apologhma (Apology) is an account of Socrates's (unsuccessful) speech in his own defense before the Athenian jury; it includes a detailed description of the motives and goals of philosophical activity as he practiced it, together with a passionate declaration of its value for life. The Kritwn (Crito) reports that during Socrates's imprisonment he responded to friendly efforts to secure his escape by seriously debating whether or not it would be right for him to do so. He concludes to the contrary that an individual citizen—even when the victim of unjust treatment—can never be justified in refusing to obey the laws of the state.
The Socrates of the Menwn (Meno) tries to determine whether or not virtue can be taught, and this naturally leads to a careful investigation of the nature of virtue itself. Although his direct answer is that virtue is unteachable, Socrates does propose the doctrine of recollection to explain why we nevertheless are in possession of significant knowledge about such matters. Most remarkably, Socrates argues here that knowledge and virtue are so closely related that no human agent ever knowingly does evil: we all invariably do what we believe to be best. Improper conduct, then, can only be a product of our ignorance rather than a symptom of weakness of the will {Gk. akrasia [akrásia]}. The same view is also defended in the PrwtagoraV (Protagoras), along with the belief that all of the virtues must be cultivated together.
In his use of critical reasoning, by his unwavering commitment to truth, and through the vivid example of his own life, fifth-century Athenian Socrates set the standard for all subsequent Western philosophy. Since he left no literary legacy of his own, we are dependent upon contemporary writers like Aristophanes and Xenophon for our information about his life and work. As a pupil of Archelaus during his youth, Socrates showed a great deal of interest in the scientific theories of Anaxagoras, but he later abandoned inquiries into the physical world for a dedicated investigation of the development of moral character. Having served with some distinction as a soldier at Delium and Amphipolis during the Peloponnesian War, Socrates dabbled in the political turmoil that consumed Athens after the War, then retired from active life to work as a stonemason and to raise his children with his wife, Xanthippe. After inheriting a modest fortune from his father, the sculptor Sophroniscus, Socrates used his marginal financial independence as an opportunity to give full-time attention to inventing the practice of philosophical dialogue.
For the rest of his life, Socrates devoted himself to free-wheeling discussion with the aristocratic young citizens of Athens, insistently questioning their unwarranted confidence in the truth of popular opinions, even though he often offered them no clear alternative teaching. Unlike the professional Sophists of the time, Socrates pointedly declined to accept payment for his work with students, but despite (or, perhaps, because) of this lofty disdain for material success, many of them were fanatically loyal to him. Their parents, however, were often displeased with his influence on their offspring, and his earlier association with opponents of the democratic regime had already made him a controversial political figure. Although the amnesty of 405 forestalled direct prosecution for his political activities, an Athenian jury found other charges—corrupting the youth and interfering with the religion of the city—upon which to convict Socrates, and they sentenced him to death in 399 B.C.E. Accepting this outcome with remarkable grace, Socrates drank hemlock and died in the company of his friends and disciples.
Our best sources of information about Socrates's philosophical views are the early dialogues of his student Plato, who attempted there to provide a faithful picture of the methods and teachings of the master. (Although Socrates also appears as a character in the later dialogues of Plato, these writings more often express philosophical positions Plato himself developed long after Socrates's death.) In the Socratic dialogues, his extended conversations with students, statesmen, and friends invariably aim at understanding and achieving virtue {Gk. areth [aretê]} through the careful application of a dialectical method that employs critical inquiry to undermine the plausibility of widely-held doctrines. Destroying the illusion that we already comprehend the world perfectly and honestly accepting the fact of our own ignorance, Socrates believed, are vital steps toward our acquisition of genuine knowledge, by discovering universal definitions of the key concepts governing human life.
Interacting with an arrogantly confident young man in Euqufrwn (Euthyphro), for example, Socrates systematically refutes the superficial notion of piety (moral rectitude) as doing whatever is pleasing to the gods. Efforts to define morality by reference to any external authority, he argued, inevitably founder in a significant logical dilemma about the origin of the good. Plato's Apologhma (Apology) is an account of Socrates's (unsuccessful) speech in his own defense before the Athenian jury; it includes a detailed description of the motives and goals of philosophical activity as he practiced it, together with a passionate declaration of its value for life. The Kritwn (Crito) reports that during Socrates's imprisonment he responded to friendly efforts to secure his escape by seriously debating whether or not it would be right for him to do so. He concludes to the contrary that an individual citizen—even when the victim of unjust treatment—can never be justified in refusing to obey the laws of the state.
The Socrates of the Menwn (Meno) tries to determine whether or not virtue can be taught, and this naturally leads to a careful investigation of the nature of virtue itself. Although his direct answer is that virtue is unteachable, Socrates does propose the doctrine of recollection to explain why we nevertheless are in possession of significant knowledge about such matters. Most remarkably, Socrates argues here that knowledge and virtue are so closely related that no human agent ever knowingly does evil: we all invariably do what we believe to be best. Improper conduct, then, can only be a product of our ignorance rather than a symptom of weakness of the will {Gk. akrasia [akrásia]}. The same view is also defended in the PrwtagoraV (Protagoras), along with the belief that all of the virtues must be cultivated together.
dparker713
Footballguy
Its pretty provincial that consensus on Budda and Confucius is that they're good picks, but not in the running for the top spot.
And Sun Tzu is far and away the most influential military thinker of all time (and there's really only 1 other with broad influence) Its somewhat like the issue in the American draft where we had musical performers and songwriters lumped together.
BTW Tim, I have no idea why you're so down on Tesla, but he's a giant and his inventions are as responsible for modern life as anyone. Oh yeah, and unlike the guy ahead of him in the cat, he actually invented the stuff he's credited with.
And I wouldnt put Einstein or Newton first in the scientist category.
And Sun Tzu is far and away the most influential military thinker of all time (and there's really only 1 other with broad influence) Its somewhat like the issue in the American draft where we had musical performers and songwriters lumped together.
BTW Tim, I have no idea why you're so down on Tesla, but he's a giant and his inventions are as responsible for modern life as anyone. Oh yeah, and unlike the guy ahead of him in the cat, he actually invented the stuff he's credited with.
And I wouldnt put Einstein or Newton first in the scientist category.
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HERBERT THE HIPPO
REAL Ultimate Power
Andy Dufresne
Footballguy
So in other words, he got involved in a land war in Asia...AND WON. Beat that!!!
There were probably some other picks that might be "bigger" but I expect this draft to be Euro/American centric in its selections and I wanted to get one of the top Asian selections in my bag. I'm not sure what category I'm going to put him in yet. For now we'll say "leader".
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Andy Dufresne
Footballguy
Yes.
thatguy
Footballguy
Well, Khan was my likely pick, so nice snipe. Pick coming shortly, a lot of ways I could go here.
mad sweeney
Footballguy
And flush goes my dream of stealing the top spot in two categories...So in other words, he got involved in a land war in Asia...AND WON. Beat that!!!
mad sweeney
Footballguy
Again, the category isn't military thinker or theorist. It's military. It's hard to compare and contrast thinkers and doers, but Tzu isn't the #1 guy when they're all lumped together. As long as you're not judging science, I'm ok with that though I disagree. Unfortunately the guy I sniped for Newton is...
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