How did philosophers such as Hegel, Kierkegaard, Nietzsche, and Foucault respond to Socrates’ ideas?

Philosophers have responded to Socrates’ ideas with a wide range of interpretations, often using his legacy to frame their own distinct philosophical projects.1

• G.W.F. Hegel: Viewed Socrates as a pivotal figure who marked the transition from pre-reflective moral habits to individual self-consciousness. However, Hegel argued that Socrates’ approach tragically failed to reconcile this new internal awareness with universal civic standards.1
• Søren Kierkegaard: Examined Socratic irony in his dissertation. While he saw Socrates as a pagan precursor to his own belief in the "impossible demands" of a lived Christian doctrine, he also criticized Socratic irony as a form of indifference toward morality.1
• Friedrich Nietzsche: Strongly opposed what he perceived as Socrates’ "one-sided rationalism." In The Birth of Tragedy, Nietzsche argued that Socratic optimism and the faith in the "explicability of nature" were responsible for the death of Greek tragedy, which he believed should instead be viewed as an aesthetic phenomenon.123
• Michel Foucault: In his later work, Foucault became fascinated by the Socratic tradition of self-reflection and the "care of the self," finding value in these practices as a means of philosophical inquiry.1