The Irritant in the Modern Day

Socrates was a social gadfly in his own time because of the questions he posed. The ignorant character he played when posing these questions caused those he dealt with to question the way they saw things. So upsetting was his prodding of those around him to see the world from another perspective that he was eventually sentenced to death for it. Surely, there is no one so profoundly disturbing the status quo today as to warrant state disapproval to the extent of imprisonment and execution. There are still people living today playing the role of the social gadfly, attempting to make those around them more closely examine the lives they live. The most obvious and immediate examples to come to mind for me are Stephen Colbert and David Thorne. Both do so to comedic ends, but there is an entirely serious side to the things they do. Stephen Colbert plays a staunchly conservative character in interviews with politicians even though he is himself a liberal. It is usually used to humiliate the politician willing to appear on his show, but often also to point out how unexamined their positions may be. David Thorne is definitely second to none as an example of being irritating as a social gadfly is supposed to be. He usually uses a nonchalant demeanor to make those that send him hate mail seem foolish in their aggression towards him. David Thorne and Stephen Colbert both pretend to be in complete agreement with the things people say to them, and often try to take positions even more extreme than those they’re talking to in an attempt to make them appear foolish. In an email conversation regarding his son’s probation from his school’s computer lab, he tells the teacher that, “though physical discipline is no longer administered in the public school system, it would probably be appropriate in this instance if nobody is watching. I know from experience that he can take a punch.”