The intense friendship between Socrates and Alcibiades must have struck many Athenians as odd. A generation separated them in age; then, too, they were a study in contrasts. While Alcibiades charmed, Socrates irritated. Alcibiades' beauty led those around him to swoon, whereas Socrates' bulging eyes invited comparisons to a torpedo fish. Alcibiades was wealthy and politically well-connected whereas Socrates embraced his poverty and his humble lineage. Alcibiades strove to become the leading Athenian statesman, whereas Socrates only participated in politics when necessary. Alcibiades was licentious and immoderate, whereas Socrates was possessed of a remarkable self-control. When the Athenians recalled Alcibiades to charge him with impiety, he fled to Sparta, turning traitor. When they charged Socrates with impiety, he faced the accusation head on, accepted the death penalty, refused offers to help him escape, and died loyal to Athens' laws and citizens.
The relationship seems to have captivated Socrates' associates. Aeschines, Antisthenes, Phaedo, Euclides, and Plato wrote philosophical dialogues featuring the pair in conversation. But it was also a problem for philosophers. Socrates, after all, was accused of corrupting the youth, and many of Socrates' detractors had Alcibiades in mind as one of two key examples of his maleficent influence.[1] If Socrates had dedicated his life to the pursuit of wisdom and virtue and exhorted others to join him, what are we to make of Alcibiades' distinctly unphilosophical life?
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