The Socratic Problem

The "Socratic Problem," as revealed in this article is the difficulty with which historians and notable thinkers have struggled in trying to pinpoint who Socrates really was. Many of those who have written about him describe him in immensely differing ways; differing both from each other's writings and descriptions as well as differences within their own dialogues. Socrates, essentially, was not a teacher. He was not any master of an apprentice. He was not a preacher. The true value in Socrates and his methods was that he was always guiding others to their own revelations. To me, this is more beneficial than any lecture or speech. His ability to control the conversations that he had and to manipulate those conversations into an ultimate conclusion would have a much more significant effect on the "learner." Overall, (of course with exceptions), Socrates seems like the person that all of us genuinely hope to grow up to be. He "embraces poverty" and doesn't allow materialistic or societal issues to be the center of his focus. He is governed by his own principles, and although he recognizes his countries laws and promises to follow them, he does not do so blindly.
Socrates was a man of learning and observation. I view these aspects of his personality as similar to my own: he was thirsty for knowledge. Not only did he learn from the normal experiences of his life, family, and war, but he sought out knowledge and philosophies from others. His study of democracy and politics are obviously essential. But, I won't lie, I am intrigued by this articles slight emphasis on his learnings in sex. What was so profound about it that this was one of his studies of choice? Especially since the article mentions in the beginning that he, unlike most others in his position, had relations of a certain kind with those apprentices they took up. This, like many other things, shows his inner contradictions.
As far as the reading is concerned, I have to say, it was...difficult. It was not difficult to understand, but difficult to sit down and read in one sitting. I was far from the beginning when something that actually related to Socrates himself came up. The first half of the article was so caught up in explaining the details of why we don't know who Socrates really was, that I got lost from what I was really trying to read. I do understand that these circumstances hold great value in history and do greatly contribute to how we know Socrates today, but I got too caught up in the details of eveer