The Pursuit of Truth: The Mortal Enemy of 21st Century Sophists

I'm currently reading Plato's Republic. Part VII, The Philosopher Ruler, bothers me on title alone. Socrates' ideal state bothers me tenfold. What does NOT bother me is Socrates' beautiful takedown of the Sophists, the pseudo-intellectuals of his time who focus on argument and public speaking rather than the Truth.

Socrates goes beyond the Sophists . He goes for common members of the public, watching the Sophists from the sideline and nodding along haphazardly. 

Socrates sees public opinion as dangerous to the "true" philosopher.

Why?

And how is Socrates RIGHT?

Socrates argues: "All those individuals who make their living by teaching, and whom the public call 'Sophists' and envy for their skill, in fact teach nothing but the conventional views held and expressed by the mass of the people when they meet; and this they call science."

Socrates defines a true philosopher as one who is "a lover the truth." The truth, however, is complicated. Beauty, which Socrates uses as a primary example, has a "form": something that can't be seen materially, but is defines what it is. In other words: nuance. 

Taking a look at the political climate today, nuance hides like a light in the middle (not the end) of a vast, dark tunnel. The two party system in the U.S, features the Republicans, and their mainstream talking points, and the Democrats, also featuring main talking points. Deviating from the talking points immediately classifies you as "the other" by the party in question. "Trump lost the election, the media is pretty biased--ELECTION DENIER!" "I'm worried about Trump's history of being rude to woman--A MARXIST!" Check out most today's politicians for more.

Politics is just one area where the lack of nuance shows up. Religion is another. Any slight difference in theology? "YOU'RE NOT A [INSERT DENOMINATION HERE]!" Not seeing 100% eye to eye with your parents? "YOU"RE A TERRIBLE CHILD!" or "YOU'RE MEAN PARENTS!"

Socrates saw this originating from the Sophists: The arguers. The trained speech-givers. Those taught to give only certain pieces of information. The politicians. The religious authorities. And yes, even the scientists. "Vaccines work, but the data on the Covid-19 vaccine makes me worried--VACCINE DENIER! SPREADER OF MISINFORMATION!" Three years later, and the data is clear: the scientists weren't fully right on covid. 

The experts.

You can be damn sure that vice-presidential candidate J.D Vance's radical statement during the debate last night that "the experts got it wrong" will illicit a strong response from our lovely experts, the Sophists of the 21st century.

Now, not all scientists are wrong all the time. In fact, a majority of the time the scientists get it right. But sometimes they're wrong. And then what? Too bad for the common person? Too bad that public opinion comes from an indoctrination by the Sophists, preventing the true pursuit of truth by the genuine lovers of wisdom?

We all have a choice: become a Sophist, an expert teachings certain truths and pseudo-truths that fit my own, ideological point of view? Or, do I stick to being a member of the public, listening to the ideologues that calm my anxious heart and let me live a comfortable life, however unchallenging or unfulfilling.

Or, do I pursue the path of a true philosopher, and cultivate a love of truth, even if it means putting aside my pre-established ideologies, admitting that I know next to nothing about the world, and go to the source of Truth with a humble heart. 

As an aside, can one pursue Truth by investigating the internal, spiritual, religious realm? Well, Socrates believed in gods, and in some sense the monotheistic God as well. And you best be sure that religious stories contain truths that can't be found anywhere else. Let's not forget about nuance, now!

While the philosopher ruler isn't the answer (stayed tuned for another post), becoming a philosopher ruler on the individual level, taking responsibility for one's own education, even if it means reading, researching, and teaching yourself, seems like the best way to combat the vast moral confusion that the West experiences today.