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Three millennia ago, long before we could query a chatbot about life's profound questions, Socrates was engaging in dialogues reminiscent of today's AI interactions. Imagine if Socrates, with his relentless pursuit of truth through discourse, had access to today's AI. How would he navigate the world of AI chatbot digital interlocutors?
Through a contextualization of Socratic ideas and through the lens of current frontier large language model (LLM) chatbots, we’ll distill a few notable Socratic ideas into relevant and practical applications for those using AI chatbots:
Socratic Foundations for an AI-related Analysis
Socrates (470-399 BCE), a critical figure in Western philosophy, embraced a method of relentless inquiry through a dialectic- and discourse-based exploration of knowledge. We know his voice primarily through the 35 Socratic “Dialogues” written by Plato. His unwavering questioning, even to the point of his execution — which occurred because of Athenian anger at his questioning — was combined with a uniquely stoic demeanor. Recontextualized now, when chatbot prompts and stoicism are popular, Socrates is an inspiration for today's AI-driven dialogues.
Socrates' Method
The four core principles of Socrates’ method — according to a video by Rob Reich, a professor of political science at Stanford University — are:
- Uses questions to understand an individual’s values and principles — not “facts” or social proof
- Directly engages with an individual, not to make abstract arguments or be proven correct
- Utilizes productive discomfort to uncover disagreeable truths
- Highlights the complexity of the world more than providing a specific answer
Central to this method is "elenchus," a technique Socrates used to reveal contradictions in a person's beliefs. The process of elenchus approaches a problem from as many ways as possible, challenging the moral, societal and even metaphorical ramifications of an issue.
With this foundational understanding of Socratic interrogation, we can explore its relevance and application in the realm of AI.
Socratic Hints for Thinking With Generative AI
Viewing Socrates through an AI perspective sheds light on the metacognitive aspects of AI interaction and the craft of prompt design. Note, Ward Farnsworth's “Socratic Method: A Practitioner's Handbook” provided a highly recommended analysis that informed this exploration.
Defaulting to a Question
Socrates' brilliance is not in confident assertions, but in his systematic approach of creative questions to uncover deeper truths. The right question, strategically asked, can reveal more than the most articulate statement. Socrates excelled in pinpointing these critical questions that not only subtly deconstructed views of reality, but provided a new direction for understanding.
In interactions with chatbots, the inclination might be to express fixed opinions, especially since we’re encouraged to talk to them like a human — with whom we often share opinions. Yet, by embracing a stance of mutual exploration — viewing both oneself and the AI as partners in a quest for knowledge — we adopt a more Socratic, inquisitive mindset, moving away from rigid positions.
For inspiration, Farnsworth likens the Socratic “Dialogues” to Plato’s “dream,” where Socrates and his interlocutors personify Plato’s internal deliberations. From this lens, each dialogue is an exploration of Plato's own psyche. Perhaps conversations with chatbots can be seen similarly.
- Socratic-inspired insight: To learn something in your next interaction with a chatbot, only use questions and imagine you’re talking with an autonomous reflection of yourself.
Role Playing for Candor
Socrates masterfully used role play and personality in his dialogues, embodying various characters to inject levity and candor into serious discussions. This approach cuts through social conventions, such as false formality or unwillingness to challenge “the way things have always been done,” bringing clarity to complex topics.
Similarly, role playing forms a core aspect of interacting with chatbots, as seen across many prompt guides and even some platforms dedicated to the idea, such as Character.AI. A Socratic perspective would encourage chatbot roleplaying based on voice or style more than professional expertise, especially a role that is relevant to the context, topic and human participant. This approach, focusing on who rather than what, can unravel new insights and foster a richer dialogue.
- Socratic-inspired insight: Encourage chatbots to assume distinct personalities beyond professional capacities.
See more: Top 5 Free Prompt Engineering Courses
Prompting Techniques Inspired by Socrates
Here are some specific prompting strategies that integrate Socratic thinking and current prompt design best practices. Example ChatGPT outputs are available for each, but the prompts will work across leading models.
Activating Socratic Mode
Asking chatbots to “role play as Socrates” or “use the Socratic method to challenge my opinion” are effective ways to engage in a more Socratic-oriented dialogue with them beyond their basic “system prompt” — or pre-programmed instructions and restrictions.
Alternatively, you can use the specific Socratic word elenchus: “Analyze my position through elenchus.” Using elenchus keeps prompt instructions clean and concise and also reduces “Old English” responses that occasionally appear if you mention Socrates.
Pre-Task Context Window Generation With Questions
Chatbots will perform better the more relevant information is within the context window. Instead of writing all the context window yourself, use the Socratic principle of “leading with a question” to prompt the AI model with a preliminary question.
For example, rather than just prompting “write a letter,” first ask what “what should I consider when writing a letter” and then adjust the stylistic recommendations as well as add your own
Compare these two examples to see the difference: no preliminary question vs. preliminary question.
Role Playing Uncommon Voices
It’s a common best practice to ask a chatbot to orient around a professional role or experience, such as “role play as a copywriter …”, “respond as Arnold Schwarzenegger …” etc. Adding adjectives — even creating a whole detailed persona — such as “obstinate Arnold Schwarzenegger” or “an ironic copywriter,” helps to uncover truths often hidden due to it being hard to hear that type of tone in “polite” society.
Challenging Your Beliefs
Socrates saw philosophy and virtue as universal. However, outside of modern formal education environments, it can be hard to know where to restart one’s philosophical journey. The following approach can provide you with a Socratic-esque starting point to identify some initial readings:
- Pre-chatbot: Identify for yourself a foundational belief you have about the world that you don’t think enough people appreciate (e.g., “Not enough people respect the elderly”)
- Ask the following to your chatbot: Identify a foundational book and philosophical area that one should read that would support the following position and an equally foundational book and philosophical area that would challenge the same position: (position)
You can then repeat, as needed, for further recommendations.
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Conclusion
The current AI debate consistently returns to a foundational question: How can we live better lives? AI entrepreneurs and venture capitalists offer an optimistic vision, while others offer a more wary perspective. Who knows what Socrates might suggest, beyond that he would likely encourage us to embrace his enduring principles — consistent inquiry, endless curiosity and the view of truth-seeking as a lifelong journey whether with others, yourself or an AI chatbot.
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