Socrates’ Death and the Invention of Morality

I argue for the thesis that Socrates was the inventor of morality. I define morality as a kind of practical standpoint, and argue that Socrates was the first to draw attention to the characteristic marks of the moral standpoint: what I call the Decisiveness of Moral Reasons, on the one hand, and other-regardingness and the use of substantive moral principles, on the other. Socrates characterised the moral standpoint, however, in the course of justifying his own most vital decisions. Accordingly, I also argue that in order to invent morality qua practical standpoint, Socrates had to establish its practicality, and that given some Socratic assumptions he was entitled to do so simply by acting in ways that exhibited practical adherence to the Decisiveness of Moral Reasons. Finally, I argue that given the supreme demandingness of the moral standpoint a complete demonstration of its practicality could only be achieved by Socrates’ act of knowingly causing his own death.