How Socrates Thought About Democracy

It is a popular notion among the American left that something like a representative democracy is flawed and should be done away with. You may even hear tag lines coming from them like "One Person One Vote" or many associated speeches by them and their leaders on the expansion of voting rights. Since Donald Trump’s victory in 2016, their disdain for our representative democracy was at its height.

However, they do not take time to consider where our voting history was derived from. Much like other parts of our government, which is based on Ancient Greece and Rome, so too is how we think about voting. For this, we look to none other than Socrates.

Socrates, the founding father of Greek Philosophy, is portrayed as a pessimist by Plato when it comes to democracy in Book Six of *The Republic*. Plato recounts Socrates having a conversation with Adeimantus about the flaws of democracy. Here, Socrates compares society to a ship heading out to sea on a voyage when he asks, "Who would you rather have in charge of the vessel? Anybody or people highly skilled and educated in seafaring?" Adeimantus replies with the latter, then Socrates responds with the question, "Then why would you think anyone should be fit to judge who should be the ruler of a country?"

Here, Socrates makes the point that voting in an election is a skill where the voter has a deep understanding of their government and its politics. And like any skill, it is obtained through systematic education and experience. Letting any citizen vote without being learned is reckless, and only fools would put them in charge.

In 399 B.C., Socrates was put on trial for corrupting the youth of Athens and was eventually found guilty. Socrates was later put to death by hemlock. Here is the irony of 500 jurors who are not learned in philosophy deciding the fate of a philosopher.

Socrates believed a direct democracy would lead to demagoguery, which in the West seems to ring true when we look at things such as gender ideology, the condemnation of law enforcement institutions, the erosion of societal traditions, norms, and disdain for patriotism.

Socrates asks us to imagine a Presidential election debate between two candidates, one who was like a physician and the other a candy store owner. The candy store owner would argue the physician only brings you pain with sour and bitter elixirs and tells you not to eat or drink whatever you would like. The physician will never serve you feasts like he will. However, the true answer should be the physician, yes he will cause you trouble and go against your desires in order to help you.