Greek Philosophers and Learning

The ancient Greek Philosophers had a great deal of time on their hands. It’s is not as if they had to blister their hands building the Parthenon, or digging the great Athos canal. They seemed to have the luxury of sitting around contemplating everything. One day Socrates was having a chat with his good friend Meno about human virtue and whether or not it could be taught. Soon the topic of learning came up.

Meno: “Socrates, what do you mean by saying that we do not learn, and that what we call learning is only a process of recollection?”

Socrates: (Miffed) “I am saying there is no teaching, but only recollection.”
Socrates went on to try to prove his point by guiding one of Meno’s slave boys thorough a complex geometrical equation. (Plato, 380 B.C.E).

I find Socrates’ view of learning too simplistic. It’s like saying Michelangelo’s masterpiece sculpture of David just happened to be hiding in that massive slab of marble, and came out when the artist chipped away enough of the surrounding material. Like a prize in Cracker Jacks, it was there all the time.

This discounts the talent and extensive training Michelangelo endured to reach the level of genius that allowed him to create such art. Knowing how to chisel at the precise angle, realizing how hard to strike with the hammer and bringing realistic perspective to stone is not an innate quality. It is something that is taught and learned over a period of time. There might be a natural talent toward excelling at something, but without guidance and practice, potential will not be fully realized.