Just Myrto

by Laurie Gray

  Author’s Note

  HISTORIANS DISAGREE ON whether or not Socrates married Myrto. Of those who believe he did, some say that Myrto was Socrates’ first wife and that Xanthippe was Socrates’ second wife and the mother of all three of his sons. Others say that Myrto was Socrates’ second wife and the mother of his two youngest sons.

  Most of what we know about Socrates comes from his student, Plato. Plato names only Xanthippe as Socrates’ wife. Nevertheless, Plato’s student Aristotle wrote that Socrates married Xanthippe first, and that she was the mother of Lamprocles. Later, Socrates took Myrto, a descendant of Aristides the Just, as his second wife. According to Aristotle, Myrto had no dowry, and was the mother of Sophroniscus and Menexenus. Just Myrto implies that Plato wrote Myrto out of history because she did not return his love. While this is pure conjecture by the author, it would be ironic if Myrto’s feelings for Plato were in fact “platonic.”

  Socrates’ manner of questioning has become known as the Socratic Method. Plato’s Socratic dialogues provide the foundation for western thought, yet the opportunity for eastern influence and mysticism existed as well. The art of self-inquiry inherent in the Socratic Method is a universally spiritual practice.

  Glossary

  Acropolis – The ancient fortress of Athens including buildings such as the Parthenon.

  Acheron – Known as the river of pain, Acheron was one of the five rivers of the Greek underworld (Hades).

  Achilles – A Greek warrior, hero of the Trojan War and central character of Homer’s The Illiad.

  Aeschylus – (c. 525 – 456 BCE) Ancient Greek playwright, often called the father of tragedy.

  Aesop – (c. 620–564 BCE) Ancient Greek storyteller credited with writing many fables.

  Agora – The gathering place or central market in ancient Greek cities.

  Alcaeus – (c. 620 – 6th century BCE) Ancient Greek lyric poet and alleged lover of Sappho.

  Alcibiades – (c. 450 – 404 BCE) Famous Athenian statesman, orator and general. Subject of two dialogues by Plato (Alcibiades I and II 103a – 151c).

  Alopeke – Home of Socrates, southeast of the Acropolis.

  Amazon – A nation of women warriors in Greek mythology.

  Ambrosia – Food or drink of the Greek gods.

  Antigone – A tragedy written by Sophocles circa 441 BCE; in Greek mythology, Antigone was the daughter of Oedipus and Jocasta (mother of Oedipus).

  Anytus – One of the Athenian politicians who prosecuted Socrates (Apology 23e).

  Aphrodite – Greek goddess of love and procreation.

  Apollo – Greek god of the sun, god of the Oracle at Delphi, and twin brother of goddess Artemis.

  Ares – Greek god of war.

  Aristides – Grandson of Aristides the Just, son of Lysimachus, student of Socrates (Laches 179b, Theages 130a).

  Aristides the Just – (c. 530 – 468 BCE) Athenian statesman and general. son of Lysimachus, father of Lysimachus, grandfather of Aristides, and grandfather or ancestor of Myrto.

  Aristocles – Plato’s given name at birth.

  Ariston – Plato’s father.

  Aristophanes – (c. 446 - 386 BCE) A comic playwright of ancient Athens whose surviving plays include The Acharnians (unflattering to Aspasia) and The Clouds (unflattering to Socrates).

  Artemis – Greek goddess of hunting and childbirth, protector of young girls; often represented by the moon, Artemis is the twin sister of god Apollo.

  Asclepius – Greek god of medicine and healing.

  Aspasia – (c. 470 - 400 BCE) Foreign wife of the Athenian statesman Pericles, teacher of Socrates (Menexenus 235e – 249e).

  Athena – Greek goddess of wisdom and justice; also known as sometimes called Pallas Athena.

  Athens – Powerful city-state in ancient Greece.

  Chaos – The dark, silent abyss from which all things came into existence; formless matter.

  Chaerophon – (c. 465 – 401 BCE) Friend of Socrates who asked the Oracle at Delphi if anyone was wiser than Socrates (Apology 21a).

  Charmides – (c. 450 – 403 BCE) Plato’s uncle; one of the Thirty Tyrants.

  Chorus – In classical Greek plays, this group of performers acted as a collective voice for dramatic action, providing background and other crucial information.

  Colonus – In ancient Greece, a town just northwest of Athens; birthplace of Sophocles; burial place of Oedipus.

  Connus – Socrates’ music teacher (Menexenus 236a).

  Corinth – A city-state in ancient Greece, roughly halfway between Athens and Sparta.

  Creon – Mythological ruler of Thebes; a main character in Sophocles plays Antigone and Oedipus at Colonus.

  Critias – (460 – 403 BCE) Relative of Plato; one of the Thirty Tyrants.

  Crito – Socrates’ wealthy friend who wants Socrates to escape from prison and go into exile. Subject of a dialogue by Plato (Crito 43a – 54e).

  Croesus – King of Lydia from 560 - 547 BCE until his defeat by the Persians.

  Delium – Site of a battle in the Peloponnesian War in 424 BCE where Alcibiades marched with Socrates after the Athenians were defeated. (Symposium 221a-c).

  Delos – Island in ancient Greece where the Athenians sent an annual tribute to Apollo. No prisoners could be executed during the ships voyage, so Socrates’ execution was delayed until the ship returned.

  Demeter – Greek goddess of the harvest; mother of Persephone.

  Democritus – (c. 460 – 370 BCE) One of the two founders of ancient theory on atoms; author of Little Cosmology; student of Leucippus.

  Dionysus – Greek god of wine and the arts.

  Ephebe – A young man, aged 18-20, in training to become a good citizen and soldier.

  Eros – Greek god of sexual love.

  Euripides – (c. 480 – 406 BCE) Ancient Greek playwright.

  Eurydice – Creon’s wife in Greek mythology and in Sophocles’ plays Antigone and Oedipus at Colonus.

  Euthyphro – Young man who brought marcher charges against his father for the death of a servant. Subject of a dialogue by Plato (Euthyphro 2a – 16a).

  Gorgias – (c. 485 – 380 BCE) A pre-Socratic philosopher, master of rhetoric, and sophist. Subject of a dialogue by Plato (Gorgias 447a – 527 e).

  Graces – In Greek mythology, three goddesses of charm, beauty, and creativity; Socrates sculpted a statue of the Graces that stood at the entrance to the Acropolis.

  Hades – Greek god of death; also the name of the underworld where the dead reside.

  Haemon – The son of Creon and Eurydice and lover of Antigone in Sophocles’ play Antigone.

  Helen of Troy – Wife of Menelaus, Helen was considered to be the most beautiful woman in the world. Her abduction by Paris started the Trojan War.

  Hera – Greek goddess of marriage; wife of Zeus.

  Heraclitus – (c. 535 – 475 BCE) Pre-Socratic Greek philosopher famous for saying, “No man ever steps in the same river twice”; author of On Nature.

  Hercules – Greek demi-god famous for his strength and adventures.

  Hermes – Greek god who acts as messenger and intercessor between mortals and the divine.

  Hesiod – (c. 750 – 650 BCE) Ancient Greek poet, author of Theogony.

  Hestia – Greek goddess of the hearth and domestic life.

  Hippocrates – (c. 460 – 370 BCE) Ancient Greek physician credited with coining the Hippocratic Oath.

  Homer – (7th or 8th century BCE) Ancient Greek epic poet, author of The Iliad and The Odyssey.

  Hoplite – Citizen soldier of Ancient Greece who wore a suit of armor and fought with bronze spears and shields.

  Hygeia – Greek goddess of health and cleanliness.

  Hymen – Greek god of marriage ceremonies, inspiring feasts and song.

  Hymenaeus – Greek lyric poems sung during the procession of the bride to the groom’s house.

  Iaso – Greek goddess of recuperation from illness. The Illiad – Ancient Greek epic poem by
Homer about the Trojan War.

  Illisus – In ancient Greece, a river just outside the defensive walls of Athens.

  Isles of the Blessed – In Greek mythology, a place like paradise where heroes and favored mortals are received by the gods.

  Jocasta – In Greek mythology and in Sophocles’ play Oedipus the King, Jocasta is the mother who abandons Oedipus at birth and later unwittingly becomes his wife.

  Lamprocles – Eldest son of Socrates and Xanthippe.

  Leon from Salamis – An honorable man unjustly put to death by the Thirty Tyrants. Socrates refused to participate in the injustice (Apology 32c-d).

  Leucippus – One of the two founders of ancient theory on atoms; author of Big Cosmology; Democritus’ teacher.

  Lycon – A prosecutor in the trial of Socrates (Apology 36b).

  Lysicles – (c. 478 -428 BCE) Athenian general; Aspasia’s husband after Pericles died.

  Lysimachus – Son of Aristides the Just (Laches 179b, Theages 130a).

  Medusa – In Greek mythology, a monster with a woman’s face and serpent hair; anyone who looked directly at her would turn to stone.

  Meletus – Chief prosecutor of Socrates (Euthyphro 2b)

  Menexenus – Socrates’ youngest son, still an infant at the time of Socrates’ death; multiple sources (Diogenes Laertius, Athenaeus, Plutarch, Aristotle) suggest that Myrto rather than Xanthippe was Menexenus’ mother.

  Mount Olympus – Home of the twelve Olympian gods.

  Muses – Eight Greek goddesses of inspiration for literature, the arts and science; Plato names the poet Sappho as the ninth muse. (Epigrams 16).

  Myrto – (5th century BCE) A descendent, probably the granddaughter, of Aristides the Just; Aristotle and others have named her as Socrates’ second wife and the mother of his two youngest sons, Sophroniscus and Menexenus.

  Obol – A silver coin in ancient Greece placed in the mouth of the dead to ensure safe passage to the afterlife. Six obols equaled a drachma, which was approximately one day’s wage. Those serving on Socrates’ jury would have received three obols each.

  Odysseus – King of Ithaca and hero of Homer’s epic poem The Odyssey. Odysseus was also the mastermind behind the Trojan Horse in Homer’s The Illiad.

  The Odyssey – Ancient Greek epic poem by Homer about Odyssey’s journey home from the Trojan War.

  Oedipus the King – Ancient Greek tragedy by Sophocles first performed in Athens circa 429 BCE. Oedipus was destined from birth to murder his father Laius and marry his mother Jocasta.

  Oracle at Delphi – Dating back to 1400 BCE, the Oracle of Delphi was the most important shrine in all Greece where people went have their questions about the future answered by the priestess of Apollo.

  Panacea – Greek goddess of universal remedy.

  Panathenaic Way – Stretching from one of the city gates through the market place towards the Acropolis, passing the Parthenon and stopping at the altar of Athena, the Panathenaic Way marked the path of the annual procession in celebration of Athena’s birthday.

  Pandora – In Greek mythology, Pandora was the first human woman created by the gods. According to the myth, Pandora’s curiosity led her to open a jar releasing all of the evils of humanity into the world.

  Parmenides – (early 5th century BCE) One of the most significant pre-Socratic philosophers; author of On Nature and subject of a dialogue by Plato (Parmenides 126a – 166c).

  Parthenon – Temple of the goddess Athena in the Acropolis in Athens.

  Pegasus – The divine winged horse in Greek mythology.

  Penelope – The faithful wife of Odysseus.

  Pericles – (c. 495 – 429 BCE) The most prominent and influential Greek statesman, orator, and general of Athens during the Golden Age between the Persian and Peloponnesian wars.

  Persephone – In Greek mythology, Persephone is the daughter of Zeus and Demeter; she was abducted by Hades and became queen of the underworld where she must remain during the winter months, but she returns to earth each spring.

  Persia – A great empire east of ancient Greece that invaded Greece three times during the Persian Wars in the 5th century BCE.

  Phaenarete – Socrates’ mother; a midwife.

  Piraeus – The port city of ancient Athens. At one time the two were connected by long walls for security with a stone gate at the harbor.

  Plato – (c. 428 – 348 BCE) Socrates’ most famous student and Aristotles’ teacher. Through his Socratic dialogues, Plato is credited for laying the foundation of western philosophy and science.

  Poseidon – Greek god of the sea.

  Protagoras – (c. 490 BCE – 420 BCE) A pre-Socratic Greek philosopher and sophist; subject of a dialogue by Plato (Protagoras 309a – 362a).

  Pythagoras – (c. 570 – 495 BCE) Ancient Greek philosopher and mathematician, best known for the Pythagorean Theorum.

  Sappho – (c. 620 – 570 BCE) Greek lyric poet; Plato calls her the ninth muse (Epigrams 16).

  Socrates – (c. 469 – 399 BCE) Ancient Greek philosopher, Plato’s teacher; best known for his manner of asking questions or the Socratic Method.

  Solon – (c. 638 – 558 BCE) Ancient Greek statesman, lawmaker and poet, often credited with laying the foundation for Athenian democracy.

  Sophists – In the second half of the 5th century BCE, the Sophists were intellectuals skilled in rhetoric, experts in debate, and able to persuade or convince others of things regardless of truth. Sophistry is also the subject of a dialogue by Plato (Sophist 216a -268d).

  Sophocles – (c. 496 – 406 BCE) Ancient Greek playwright who wrote Oedipus the King, Antigone, and Oedipus at Colonus. Sophocles wrote Oedipus at Colonus shortly before his death and his grandson (also called Sophocles) produced it at the Festival of Dionysus in 401 BCE.

  Sophroniscus – Socrates’ father, believed to be a sculptor or stonemason; also Socrates middle son, still a toddler at the time of Socrates’ death; multiple sources (Diogenes Laertius, Athenaeus, Plutarch, Aristotle) suggest that Myrto rather than Xanthippe was Sophroniscus’ mother.

  Sparta – A dominant military power in ancient Greece; between 431 and 404 BCE, Sparta was the principal enemy of Athens during the Peloponnesian War.

  Sphinx – A mythical creature with the body of a lion, wings of an eagle, head of a woman and tail of a serpent that guarded the entrance of Thebes and required travelers to answer a riddle before allowing them to pass.

  Styx – A river in Greek mythology that formed the boundary between earth and the underworld.

  Thales – (c. 624 BC – 546 BCE) The first Greek philosopher who attempted to explain natural phenomena without reference to mythology; also considered to be the first true mathematician in ancient Greece.

  Theano – (6th century BCE) Wife of Pythagoras and author of Pythagorean Apophthegms, Female Advice, On Virtue, On Piety, On Pythagoras, Philosophical Commentaries, and Letters, but none of her actual writings have survived.

  Thebes – Ancient city in central Greece; home to many kings and site of many legends in Greek mythology.

  Theogony – A poem by Hesiod composed circa 700 BCE describing the genealogy or birth of the Greek gods.

  Theseus – The mythical founder and king of Athens in ancient Greece who slayed the Minotaur; the Athenians sent a religious mission to the island of Delos every year on Theseus’s ship in honor of Apollo. No executions were permitted from the time the ship sailed until its return several weeks later.

  Thirty Tyrants – The pro-Spartan rulers in Athens after Sparta defeated Athens in the Peloponnesian War in 404 BCE. They were overthrown in 403 BCE.

  Trojan Horse – The mythological, huge wooden horse the Greeks used to sneak soldiers into the city of Troy and win the Trojan War.

  Trojan War – One of the most important events in Greek mythology made famous through Homer’s The Illiad and The Odyssey. Whether or not the myth is based on any historical reality remains an open question.

  Xanthippe – Socrates’ wife and the mother o
f at least one of his three sons; Xanthippe’s family may have been more socially prominent than Socrates’ family because the ancient Greek custom was to name one’s first son after the more illustrious of the two grandfathers, and Socrates’ eldest son was named Lamprocles, presumably after Xanthippe’s father.

  Zeus – Greek god of sky and thunder who rules all the gods and men from Mount Olympus.

  Note: References to Plato’s work include the “Stephanus numbers” commonly used in scholarly references to the works of Plato to indicate the corresponding page and section of the Greek text as edited by the French scholar Henri Estienne, aka Stephanus in Latin (Paris, 1578).

  About the Author

  As a teacher and attorney, Laurie Gray has always been a fan of the Ancient Greek philosopher Socrates and the Socratic Method. In addition to writing, speaking and consulting through her company Socratic Parenting LLC, Laurie currently works as a bilingual child forensic interviewer at her local Child Advocacy Center and as an adjunct professor of criminal sciences at Indiana Tech University. She has served on the Faculty at the National Symposium on Child Abuse annually since 2009. Her debut novel Summer Sanctuary received a Moonbeam Gold Medal for excellence in young adult fiction and was named an Indiana Best Book Finalist. Laurie is also the author of Maybe I Will and A Simple Guide to Socratic Parenting. You can visit her online at www.SocraticParenting.com.