A Fictive Socratic Dialogue

Socrates had gathered his students in the shade of the symbolic Platane tree at the public square for a dialogue about city-states, in context of state of mind.

Socrates: The only thing I know is that I know nothing. Students, you may now ask me anything.

Student: “What is consciousness?”

Socrates: A philosophic inquiry always holds an answer. What does the word consciousness mean to you.

Student: What does ness in consciousness mean; I was aware of that ness* means “without”; I wasn’t consciously aware of that consciousness means “unconscious”.

Socrates: You are conscious of what consciousness is.

*Linguistically, the suffix -ness comes from the Latin word ness, meaning “without”. Commonly, this etymology for the suffix -ness isn’t considered correct**, but the meaning of the Latin word ness is correct. What it does is that it works as a philosophic semantic tool for inquiry and critical thinking; Is conscious a city-state of mind or is it simply a state of mind; maybe it isn’t a state at all.

** Semantically, the double meaning of the word correct may be confusing.