6. Socrates’ great mind could not save him from a tragic demise brought about by political rivalry.
In around 370 BC, Socrates would have been something of a celebrity in ancient Athens. Philosophers were the rock stars of the day, and none was more famous than he. The wisest minds of the time joined him for his famous ‘dialogues’, while his philosophy school attracted the best young thinkers, including many who would go on to become intellectual titans themselves. However, his political views would be his downfall: in the end, Socrates endured a huge fall, with the people of Athens turning against him and effectively causing him to take his own life.
Plato, the most famous student who was schooled by Socrates, noted that his mentor was “the best, wisest and most upright man of any that I have ever known.” But however upright he might have been, his views on democracy were not popular. And Socrates himself became increasingly unpopular, especially given that two of his own students, Alcibiades and Critias had, in attempting to overthrow the democratic government, caused a wave of repression. Many citizens ended up losing their land and possessions, and many were sent into exile. Socrates was blamed for all of this.
In the end, the once-great man of Athens was hauled before a court and given a humiliating decision: either he could go into exile and never return, or he could drink a cup of poison. A proud man, Socrates chose the hemlock. Locked up in a prison cell, he died alone and by his own hand – a sad fall from grace for one of the greatest minds that ever lived.