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The Socratic Method

A Practitioner's Handbook
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( 1,158 ratings, 143 reviews)
Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
The Socratic Method by Ward Farnsworth explores the classical method of questioning and dialogue used by Socrates to stimulate critical thinking and illuminate ideas. The book examines how Socratic questioning can lead to deeper understanding and insight in both philosophical discussion and everyday situations, encouraging readers to adopt this method for personal and intellectual growth. It blends historical context with practical application, making it both an informative and engaging read.
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Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

You might enjoy this book if you are interested in exploring the art of questioning and critical thinking, which can enhance your understanding and analysis of various subjects. It delves into the ancient technique of engaging in dialogue to uncover deeper truths, making it appealing for those who appreciate philosophy or seek practical approaches to improve reasoning skills in everyday life.

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Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

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. "A wonderful book."-Rebecca Goldstein, author of Plato at the Googleplex.

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 Socratic Ethics, Ignorance, Testing Principles, 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 the Farnsworth's Classical English series, 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.

Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?

The Socratic Method by Ward Farnsworth has been praised for its insightful exploration of the Socratic method's relevance to contemporary discourse. Reviewers highlight its potential to challenge fanatical thinking and promote intellectual humility. The book is described as elegant and erudite, effectively clarifying the Socratic method as an essential tool for rigorous questioning and honest debate, making it valuable for both scholars and general readers interested in enhancing their critical thinking skills.

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Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781567926859

Publisher: David R. Godine Publisher Inc

Format: Hardback

Date Published: 18 November 2021

Country: United States

Imprint: David R. Godine Publisher Inc

Illustration: Illustrations

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Width: 157.0mm

Height: 231.0mm

Weight: 250g

About the Author

Ward Farnsworth is Professor and W. Page Keeton Chair at the University of Texas School of Law. He is author of The Socratic Method, The Practicing Stoic, and the Farnsworth Classical English series which includes Argument, Rhetoric, Metaphor, and Style-all published by Godine.

Also by Ward Farnsworth

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  • The Practicing Stoic
    See more clearly, live more wisely, and bear the burdens of this life with greater ease—here are the greatest insights of the Stoics, in their own words. Presented in twelve lessons, Ward Farnsworth systematically presents the heart of Stoic philosophy accompanied by commentary that is clear and concise. A foundational idea to Stoicism is that we appear to go through...
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  • The Socratic Method
    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...
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  • Farnsworth's Classical English Argument
    “Instructive and entertaining.” — Wall Street Journal Learn how to argue from the masters. This book is a complete course on the art of argument, taught by the greatest practitioners of it: Churchill, Lincoln, and hundreds of others from the golden age of debate in England and America. The book's concise chapters provide lessons in all aspects of give and...
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  • Farnsworth's Classical English Rhetoric
    "I must refrain from shouting what a brilliant work this is (prteritio). Farnsworth has written the book as he ought to have written it and as only he could have written it (symploce). Buy it and read it, buy it and read it (epimone)." - Bryan A. Garner, Garner's Modern English Usage Everyone speaks and writes in patterns. Farnsworth is...
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  • Farnsworth's Classical English Style
    Farnsworth's Classical English Style is a storehouse of effective writing, showing the techniques you may freely adapt to make music of your own. -The Baltimore Sun Say it with style—on paper or in person. This book explains why the best writing sounds that way, with more than 100 examples from Lincoln, Churchill, and other masters of the language. Farnsworth shows...
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  • The Practicing Stoic
    See more clearly, live more wisely, and bear the burdens of this life with greater ease. Here are the greatest insights of the Stoics, in their own words. Presented in twelve lessons, Ward Farnsworth systematically presents the heart of Stoic philosophy accompanied by commentary that is clear and concise. A foundational idea to Stoicism is that we appear to go...
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