The Joke |
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The Wisdom of Socrates. Keep this philosophy in mind the next time you hear a rumor. In ancient Greece, Socrates was lauded for his wisdom. One day the great philosopher met an acquaintance, who ran up excitedly and said, "Socrates, do you know what I just heard about one of your students?" Socrates said, "Wait! Before you tell me, I'd like you to pass a little test. It's called the Test of Three." The man said, "The Test of Three?" Socrates said, "Correct. Before you talk about my student let's test what you're going to say. The first test is Truth. Have you made absolutely sure that what you'll tell me is true?" The man said, " No, I just heard about it." Socrates said, "So you don't really know if it's true or not. Now let's try the second test, the test of Goodness. Is what you're about to tell me about something good?" The man said, "No!" Socrates continued, "So, you want to tell me something bad about my student even though you're not certain it's true?" The man shrugged, a little embarrassed. Socrates said, "You may still pass. There's a third test, the filter of Usefulness. Will what you tell me be useful to me even if it's not true?" The man thought. "Definitely not." Socrates said, "Then if it's neither true nor good nor even useful, why tell me at all?" The man was ashamed and said no more. This is the reason Socrates was a great philosopher and held in such high esteem. It also explains why he never found out that Plato was having an affair with his wife. |
