Socratic Methods/prompts

If you would like to practice Socratic Methods, choose a question from this list to begin with, or chose any other unsettled question that you are interested in exploring.

The Nature of Virtue

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  • What is virtue?
  • What is civility?
  • What is fidelity?
  • What is wisdom?
  • What is temperance?
  • What is courage?
  • What is justice?
  • What is fairness?
  • What is generosity?
  • Is generosity a virtue?
  • Why is generosity a virtue?
  • What is compassion?
  • What is mercy?
  • Is mercy a virtue?
  • Why is mercy a virtue?
  • What is gratitude?
  • What is humility?
  • Who is humble?
  • Is humility a weakness?
  • What is simplicity?
  • What is tolerance?
  • Is tolerance strength?
  • What is purity?
  • What is gentleness?
  • Is gentleness a virtue?
  • What is good faith?
  • What is truth?
  • Is telling a lie ever better than telling the truth?
  • What is humor?
  • What is love?
  • What is good?

The Nature of Aesthetics

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  • What is beauty?
  • What is quality?
  • What is poetry?
  • What is passion?

The Nature of Truth

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  • What is truth?
  • What is reality?
  • What is faith?
  • What is hope?
  • Is faith the same as hope?
  • What is epistemology?
  • What is science?
  • What are facts?
  • What can we know?
  • What can’t we know?
  • Is faith a reliable epistemology?
  • Is the scientific method a reliable epistemology?

Existential Concerns

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  • What gives life meaning?
  • What matters?
  • How can I live wisely?
  • Who am I?
  • What should I do?
  • What is the most important thing I can do?
  • What is the ugliest truth about life?
  • What is the most beautiful truth about life?
  • What makes a life worth living?
  • What is the meaning of life?

Ethics and Morality

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  • What is morality?
  • What is ethics?
  • What is the basis for morality?
  • How can I determine if I am acting ethically?
  • Does evil exist?
  • What is good?
  • Is legal justice the same as moral justice?
  • Would you rather be the king of hell or a citizen in paradise?

Also consider this list of moral issues.

Exploring Worldviews

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The Wikiversity course Exploring Worldviews asks many questions that are useful as prompts. Most of the questions are in the lengthy assignment section of the course.