Introduction to Socratic Method

Socratic Method is a dialectic method of inquiry, that uses cross-examination of someone’s claims and premises in order to reveal out a contradiction or internal inconsistency among them. Hegel’s dialectic, which he usually presented in a threefold manner, was vulgarized by Heinrich Moritz Chalybäus as comprising three dialectical stages of development: a thesis, giving rise to its reaction, an antithesis which contradicts or negates the thesis, and the tension between the two being resolved by means of a synthesis. Hegel rarely used these terms himself: this model is not Hegelian but Fichtean. The Socratic method is considered to be a negative method of hypotheses elimination, in that better hypotheses are found by identifying and eliminating those which lead to contradictions. The method of Socrates is a search for the underlying hypotheses, assumptions, or axioms, which may subconsciously shape one’s opinion, and to make them the subject of scrutiny, to determine their consistency with other beliefs. The basic form is a series of questions formulated as tests of logic and fact intended to help a person or group discover their beliefs about some topic, seeking to characterize the general characteristics shared by various particular instances. Aristotle attributed to Socrates the discovery of the method of definition and induction, which he regarded as the essence of the scientific method.
The three laws of dialectics are:
• The law of the unity and conflict of opposites;
• The law of the passage of quantitative changes into qualitative changes;
• The law of the negation of the negation
The Socratic questioning involves asking a series of questions surrounding a central issue, and answering questions of the others involved. The idea is expose the opponents contradictions in such a way that proves the inquirer’s own point. The term Socratic Questioning is also used to describe the kind of questioning, with which an original question was responded to as if it were an answer. This in turn forces the person who asked the question to reformulate it in the light of the new facts or evidence.
Socratic method is widely used in contemporary legal education by many law schools in the United States. In a typical class setting, the professor asks a question and calls on a student who may or may not have volunteered an answer. The professor either then continues to ask the student questions or moves on to another student. The teacher then typically plays Devil’s advocate, trying to force the student to defend his or her position by rebutting arguments against it. These subsequent questions can take a few forms. Sometimes they seek to challenge the assumptions upon which the student based the previous answer until it breaks. Further questions can also be designed to move a student toward greater specificity, either in understanding a rule of law or a particular case. The teacher may attempt to propose a hypothetical situation in which the student’s assertion would seem to demand an exception. Finally professors use the Socratic method to allow students to come to legal principles on their own through carefully worded questions that spur a particular train of thought.
One hallmark of Socratic questioning is that typically there is more than one “correct” answer, and more often, no clear answer at all. The primary goal of Socratic method in law schools is not to answer usually unanswerable questions, but to explore the contours of often difficult legal issues and to teach students the critical thinking skills they will need as lawyers. This is often done by altering the facts of a particular case to tease out how the result might be different. This method encourages students to go beyond memorizing the facts of a case and instead focus on application of legal rules to fungible fact patterns. As the assigned texts are typically case law, the Socratic method, if properly used, can display that judges’ decisions are usually conscientiously made but are based on certain premises, belief, and conclusions that are the subject of legitimate argument.

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