Socratic Definition

In class, we covered the concept of a ‘Socratic Definition.’ We noted that, when offered an example of the concept to be defined, Socrates pressed his interlocutor to instead provide a general definition in terms of a set of necessary and sufficient conditions for membership in the concept. What, in other words, makes a particular example of a pious or just action into an example of piety or justice? What characteristic features or marks does the example exhibit, which qualifies it as an instance of the concept? What are the unique qualities or features that all instances of the concept share in common?
Imagine you are engaged in a dialogue with Socrates, and he presses you to give a general definition of this sort in regards to the following concepts:
1. Love
2. Sex
3. Sexual Activity
Pick one of these concepts, and provide a ‘Socratic Definition’ in the sense described above. More specifically, identify the set of necessary and sufficient conditions which any example must satisfy in order to qualify as an instance of the concept. (i.e., what does it mean to really be in love? What precisely counts as having ‘sex’?) Defend your definition by providing two distinct supporting considerations as to why it is correct.
For Section (A), you may find the following explanations helpful:
Necessary condition: a condition which any example must satisfy in order to qualify as an instance of the concept. For example, many people think that ‘consent’ is an integral feature of any sexual relationship, and that an activity cannot truly count as sexual unless it is consensual.
Sufficient condition: a condition which, if satisfied, guarantees membership in the relevant concept. For example, many people think that penile-vaginal penetration is a sufficient condition for sex having taken place. In other words, if a penis penetrates a vagina, then sex has most certainly taken place, regardless of what else happens.
Socratic definition: a set of conditions which are individually necessary and jointly sufficient for membership in a concept. Any example must satisfy each of these conditions individually in order to count as an instance of the concept. If it satisfies all of the conditions, it is an instance of the concept e.g.,
“Sexual acts might be defined as those involving contact with a sexual body part…In this analysis, the sexual parts of the body are first catalogued; acts are then judged to be sexual if and only if they involve contact with one of these parts.” (Coursepack, p 11)
“(S)exual acts are (i) acts that are procreative in structure and (ii) any acts that are the physiological or psychological precursors or concomitants of acts that are sexual by (i)” (Coursepack, p 12)
“(S)ex with someone is the conscious, consenting, mutually acknowledged pursuit of shared sexual pleasure. Not a bad definition. If you are turning each other on and you say so and you keep doing it, then it’s sex. It’s broad enough to encompass a lot of sexual behavior beyond genital contact/orgasm; it’s distinct enough to not include every instance of sexual awareness or arousal; and it contains the elements I feel are vital — acknowledgement, consent, reciprocity, and the pursuit of pleasure.” (Greta Christina)
Section (B): Conceptual Analysis II (10pts)
Perhaps the most frustrating aspect of Socrates interrogative method, is his ability to mercilessly deconstruct conceptual definitions proposed by his interlocutor. One of Socrates’ most effective methods to accomplish this deconstruction is the production of counter-examples. In other words, once his interlocutor has proposed a definition of a concept in terms of a set of necessary and sufficient conditions, Socrates will produce a counterexample which either does not satisfy the definition yet intuitively is an instance of the concept, or something which does satisfy the definition, but intuitively is not an instance of a concept. So, for instance, if someone were to propose that the concept of a chair can be defined as follows:
‘Four legged object that you sit on’
one could propose a bean bag chair as a counter-example, since it is something which intuitively is a chair, but does not satisfy the definition. One might also propose a horse as a counter example, since it satisfies the definition but is not a chair.
With this in mind, consider and respond to two, foreseeable objections (5pts each) that Socrates (or his likes) might introduce in an attempt to refute the definition you provided in Section (A). In other words, provide a potential counter example to your definition, and explain why that counterexample might be thought to refute your definition. Then move on to defend your definition against the counter example with at least one supporting rational consideration
Here you might argue for instance that though it seems to satisfy your definition it really doesn’t, or that though it seems, intuitively to be an instance of the concept, actually it isn’t. For example, if you think that consent is a necessary condition of sexual activity, rape could be introduced as a potential counter example to your definition. A potential response would then be to say that though rape is ostensibly sexual, in fact it is not sexual at all, but simply a form of violent assault.
NOTE:section A please write 1 page and section B write 3 page