...This paper will argue that during “The trial and Death of Socrates”, Socrates could have given better arguments for his defense. First it will outline the prejudices or accusations Socrates has to face during his trial. It will then show how Socrates acted as tough he wanted to lose the case and finally it will conclude explaining the arguments Socrates could have given in order to be acquitted. During the first speech (18a-19b) Socrates has to overcome two different types of prejudices: the old prejudice against Socrates set by the plays of Aristophanes and the new prejudices that included impiety charged by Meletus as well as the corruption of the youth. In fact more than once is Socrates confused for someone else. Aristophanes is responsible for latter but it is reconstructed by Meletus as including both impiety and corruption and Socrates is portrayed as a corrupt teacher .the first charge of impiety also originates with Aristophanes but Meletus confuses Socrates with the atheistic Anaxagoras when he describes Socrates as seeking to study the heavens (18a) the second charge of corruption is also in Aristophanes' Clouds but confuses Socrates with Protagoras. This led to confusion (18e) of Socrates with other sophists like Gorgias, Prodicus, and Hippias. The new prejudice against Socrates really is because of the Socratic paradox (20c-21a): “he knows nothing and only in this he claims to be wise “ this paradox aroused hatred against him (21b, 23ab), even though he...
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...This court finds Socrates guilty of “inquiring into things below the earth and in the sky, making the weaker argument defeat the stronger, and teaching others to follow his example.” [19b] Each of these charges were brought to the court’s attention by Meletus, and upon reflection after the trial of Socrates, they found these claims to hold evidence under the light of law and justice. This decision was won by a mere thirty votes, and took much consideration on the parts of all jurymen. These jurymen acted upon thoughts of justice and truth, and the reasoning for the charges will be addressed on a claim by claim basis. In considering the charge that Socrates inquires into things below the earth and in the sky, [19b] the court found that Socrates has indeed questioned many people-...
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...these premises is that Socrates is not the one who is corrupting the youth because he is a specialist in this field. In addition, the real corruptors of the youth are the greater population of Athens because they are not specialist on teaching wisdom. What important about this conclusion is that even though Socrates uses horses as an example he manages to apply his example to all beings and prove his case that he is innocent of the charges.The second example that Socrates makes is that people that don't care about the youth are the ones who are really corrupting them. "It is quite clear that by now, gentlemen, that Meletus, as I said before, has never paid the slightest attention to this subjects. However I invite you to tell us, Meletus, in what sense you make out that I corrupt the minds of the young." 3 The premises of this quote are:1. Meletus has no concern for the youth.2. Meletus who shows no concern for the youth cannot charge another person of corrupting the youth 3. Since Meletus, charges Socrates with corruption of the youth, though he cannot charge him. The conclusion from these premises is that Meletus is contradicting himself, and Socrates is innocent. The last point that Socrates makes to prove that he is not guilty is he says that even if he was corrupting the youth he was doing it unwillingly. "Either I have not a bad influence, or it is unintentional; so in either case what you claim is false." 4 The premises for this argument are: 1. Socrates either corrupts the...
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...Socrates Duties In the Apology, it is a trail which Socrates is trying to explain his duties as a philosopher. He uses his proclaim argument of the Gadfly to explain what he trying to do for society. As a symbol of a Gadfly, Socrates states “as upon a great noble horse which was somewhat sluggish because of its size and needed to be stirred up by a kind of Gadfly (35).He imagines himself as Gadfly who is constantly trying to help society understand their negligence. From this argument he has come to understand how easily society can be corrupted. Throughout the course of his trial, Socrates become the see that the cause of the corrupted within society is due to their ignorance. Due to this negligence and ignorance within society, Socrates believes that it is his duty to better society because it is the way of his philosophical life to help society find the truth,...
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...that, Socrates shows, are inadequate in exceptional situations, and thus lack the rigidity demanded of a definition. Yet he does not completely reject them for each expresses a common sense notion of justice which Socrates will incorporate into his discussion of the just regime in books II through V. At the end of Book I, Socrates agrees with Polemarchus that justice includes helping friends, but says the just man would never do harm to anybody. Thrasymachus believes that Socrates has done the men present an injustice by saying this and attacks his character and reputation in front of the group, partly because he suspects that Socrates himself does not even believe harming enemies is unjust. Thrasymachus gives his understanding of justice and injustice as "justice is what is advantageous to the stronger, while injustice is to one's own profit and advantage".[8] Socrates finds this definition unclear and begins to question Thrasymachus. Socrates then asks whether the ruler who makes a mistake by making a law that lessens their well-being, is still a ruler according to that definition. Thrasymachus agrees that no true ruler would make such an error. This agreement allows Socrates to undermine Thrasymachus' strict definition of justice by comparing rulers to people of various professions. Thrasymachus consents to Socrates' assertion that an artist is someone who does his job well, and is a knower of some art, which allows him to complete the job well. In so doing Socrates gets Thrasymachus...
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...Erickson 12/10/2013 Socrates asks Euthyphro once more to give a definition of holiness, since his earlier definition, that what is holy is what is approved of by the gods, does not seem to hold. Euthyphro complains that Socrates makes his arguments go around in circles and never stay in place so that he no longer knows where he stands. Further I will discuss how the concept of holiness emerges in the dialogue, present three definition that Euthyphro uses in his response to Socrates, develop my own argument of what I think Socrates goal is in the dialog. Also I will provide my own definition of piety/holiness. The concept of holiness emerges in the dialogue and why it takes a prominent position in the conversation between Socrates and Euthyphro is essentially, the question at hand is whether something is considered holy because it is loved by the gods or if that which spoken of is loved by the gods because it in itself is holy. There are many points where piety/holiness emerges in the dialog. Holiness emerges in one place in the dialog that is most noticeable to me is that Socrates comes to court to make his main point to answer to the charges of impiety and the corruption of the youth of Athens. Socrates and Euthypho are discussing how Euthypho’s father is accused of murder. They start off my discussing if the murder was just or not. If the murder was unfair then action should be against him. “A son is impious who prosecutes a father. Which shows, Socrates, how little they know...
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...“Socrates, the Man of Many Colors” The Last Days of Socrates contains a series of dialogues with Socrates in the run- up to his trial, where he is sentenced to death. Plato, the author, was inspired by Socrates. Plato was a student of his and went on to teach many famous people such as Aristotle, who wrote treatises on everything from poetry to biology, and even Alexander the Great. Plato was born into a wealthy family around the last days of the Athenian Empire (427-347 B.C.). Plato was also an advisor to the king of Syracuse. Plato had great influence throughout the history of philosophy, often being called the father of Western philosophy. He wrote over twenty philosophical dialogues and thirteen letters ( oregonstate.edu/…/Philosophers/Plato/). Most of what we know about the life of Socrates was written down by Plato. This book of Plato’s, The Last Days of Socrates, includes four works or dialogues. The first three are written very close in time to one another. The last was written years later. All have been translated into modern English from ancient Greek. All works relate to Socrates’ trial and subsequent death. The One major theme of the dialogues is justice. Justice has a direct effect upon Socrates’ behavior. He insists to Crito in the third dialog that his beliefs pertaining to what “just” means is the very reason why he has accepted the sentence he is given. This very question, “What is just?” is just the kind of thing that got him into trouble in...
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...human conduct, with respect to the rightness and wrongness of certain actions and to the goodness and badness of the motives and ends of such actions. Socrates discusses this many times in his teachings, specifically in the readings, Euthyphro, the Apology, the Crito and the Phaedo. Socrates’ main question was “What is the good life?” and his pursuit was to find out how to live this “good life”. Socrates’ pursuit of the “good life” helped him to identify knowledge with virtue. He equated knowledge with good or virtue and ignorance with bad or evil. Since no one would knowingly harm themselves, if harm came to a person, then that person must have acted in ignorance. This led him to the thought that if knowledge could be learned, so could virtue. This meant that virtue could be taught, so Socrates had conversations with anyone who boasted about being an expert of a certain subject. This would lead him to gain more knowledge (virtue), which in turn would help him in his goal to lead and teach “the good life”. In the Euthyphro, Socrates starts chatting with a man who is in court to prosecute his father for murder. This man, Euthyphro, claims to be an expert on piety (an expert of religious knowledge), and since Socrates is being prosecuted for impiety, he thinks he will learn how to escape prosecution from this expert. Socrates asks Euthyphro for a universal definition of piety, both for his own personal gain (for his defense against the charge of impiety) and also for the...
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...and unjust life. In order to reach this point, I am going to explain the concept of justice and its superior aspects from the perspective of both Plato and Aristotle by taking help from their famous works “The Republic” and “The Nicomachean Ethics”. I will also give place to counter arguments and their rebuttals. I will make my own comments at the final part of the assignment. Plato (427 BC-347 BC) was one of the earlier and most important philosophers of the world and is also known as the founder of “The Academy”. Plato’s most famous work is “The Republic” in which he tries to draw the qualities of a just individual and a just state by explaining the sublime nature of justice. In the first two books of The Republic, dialogues between different characters focus on different meanings of justice. During the conversation two conventional definitions of justice (“giving a man’s due” and “doing good to your friends, harm to your enemies”) are refuted brilliantly by Socrates and finally take the form of “doing good to your friends if they are good and doing harm to your enemies if they are bad” (Plato, p. 13). In the following parts of Book one, Thrasymachus appears with all his anger towards Socrates. Thrasymachus defines justice or what is right as “what is the interest of the stronger party” (Plato, p. 19) and rejects previous definitions....
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...Socrates Philosopher Socrates was a classical Greek Athenian philosopher. Credited as one of the founders of Western philosophy, he is an enigmatic figure known chiefly through the accounts of later classical writers, Wikipedia “Personal background” Born: 469 BC, Athens, Greece Died:399 BC, Athens, Greece Full name: Socrates Nationality: Greek Era: Ancient philosophy Region: Western philosophy School: Classical Greek Main interests: Epistemology, ethics Notable idea: SocraticMethod, Socratic irony Influenced: Most subsequent Western philosophy; more specifically, Plato, Aristotle, Aristippus, Antisthenes Spouse:Xanthippe Children:Menexenus, Lamprocles, Sophroniscus Aristotle Philosopher Aristotle was a Greek philosopher and polymath, a student of Plato and teacher of Alexander the Great “Personal background” Born: 384 BC Stagira, Chalcidice Died: 322 BC (aged 61 or 62) Euboea Nationality: Greek Era: Ancient philosophy Region: Western philosophy School: Peripatetic schoolAristotelianism Main interests: Physics, Metaphysics, Poetry, Theatre, Music, Rhetoric, Politics, Government, Ethics, Biology, and Zoology Notable ideas: Golden mean, Aristotelian logic, syllogism, hexis, homomorphism, Aristotle's theory of soul Plato Philosopher Plato was a philosopher in Classical Greece. He was also a mathematician, student of Socrates, writer of philosophical dialogues, and founder of the Academy in Athens, the first institution of higher learning in the Western...
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...1:00pm Dr. Andrew Douglas Plato’s Plea Against Democracy Democracy is defined as a government by the people that exercise their rights through the elected officials and ruled by the majority. The written dialogues of Socrates by Plato take into account that democracy is actually inefficient and undermines the true values of their citizens. Plato’s best known and comprehensive work is the Republic. He criticized democracy as an inadequate form of government because it caused corruption of people through public opinions and created rulers whose main concern it to the ability to influence its citizen rather than being knowledgeable of proper rulership. Therefore, this government is capable of molding the perception and ideas of the citizens. According to Plato, democratic governance is a poor form of government due to the focus on self-interest rather than the welfare of society as a whole. In this essay, Plato’s background, views on politics will be presented first; then, his in-depth opinion of democracy and what he believed to be an ideal society. Plato wrote, in his autobiography Seventh Letter, that he could not identify himself with any political parties because they were heavily engage in corrupted activities. However, it was due to the execution of Socrates that provided Plato with the assurance that the existing governments were fallacious without any possible reparation. He perceived politics as unhealthy and wanted to achieve an eradication of politics. According to...
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...The teachings of Socrates successfully shaped Ancient Greece into an advanced civilisation. To what extent is this statement correct? In 469BC, one of the most important philosophical influences in the Ancient Greek civilisation was born. Socrates’ teachings would continue to heavily impact on philosophical thought throughout the ages. Socrates began as a stonemason, but quickly made the change to a life pursuing the answers to all moral problems with emphasis on the right conduct by which one should live their life. His teachings attracted groups of young men who adopted his methodologies and became fascinated with the ideas he presented, which although popular with some, were often in conflict with the politicians in Athens at the time. Socrates lived through one of Athens’ most advanced eras and he saw firsthand the rise of the Athenian Empire. He often passed judgment and was highly opinionated on many issues which were putting Athens on the map, including democracy. He also promoted honesty and virtue as key contributors to a happy life. Socrates was one of only a few philosophers to be recognised for his work in his lifetime and this indicates that he must have been significant in some capacity. However, Athens was an ever-expanding empire, which meant that their culture was heavily impacted on by not just Greek people on the inside but also by the countries that they conquered and the foreigners who came to Athens as slaves or traders. These outside influences...
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...Introduction In this era when individuals are questioning the legitimacy and wisdom of unregulated free markets, issues are raised about the most efficient form of economic activity and the best role for government in an economy. These issues have been discussed at many points in the past, and different societies have come to different conclusions regarding political and economic systems. In the United States, and many developed nations around the world, the view has often been that democracy accompanied by capitalism, offers the best, most efficient use of resources and governments guided by those principles assure the best outcomes for their populations. Other countries have adopted very different governing principles. Communist doctrine, as adopted by some nations, endorses the establishment of an egalitarian, classless, stateless society based on common ownership of the means of production and property (Communism: The failure of an utopian system, 2008). The civilization is governed by an individual, or individuals, whose function is to ensure the efficiency of the society as a whole. As an ideal, the communist doctrine defines a just city as one that eliminates the need for its citizens to wish to exploit each other. History appears to indicate that in practice, however, the communist vision cannot be fulfilled since “absolute power (which is given to the leader) corrupts absolutely” (Martin, 2009). Human nature does not appear to manage total supremacy well. 49 When...
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...overarching philosophical project of defining noble and proper human existence. It exists in the form of a mostly friendly (though at times scathing) conversation between Socrates and four fellow citizens. Chaerephon, an apparent contemporary of Socrates, is found speaking with Plato's teacher at the beginning of the dialogue, yet says little else throughout the conversation. Callicles, another of Socrates's peers (and here his harshest insulter), plays host to Gorgias as well as opponent to Socrates near the discussion's close. Gorgias is the famous orator (for whom this text was named), the questioning of whom serves as catalyst for the debates around which Gorgias centers. And Polus is Gorgias's inexperienced, overeager student. One must remember that although the dialogue depicts a fictitious interaction, Socrates was indeed Plato's teacher. As a result, this character's words for the most part should be taken as indicative of the actual Socratic framework and presentation, in addition to serving as an expression of Plato's own positions. Though Plato himself did not split his writing into sections, the text nonetheless divides quite smoothly into general topics. The first vague section (ending at 466) finds Socrates and his friend Chaerephon discussing Gorgias's status as an imminent rhetorician. Socrates desires to question Gorgias about the scope and nature of rhetoric, so the two head towards the home of Callicles where the great Sophist can be found. The intense discussion...
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...1-5 1. When Socrates is on trial he initiates his defense by comparing his manner of speaking to that of his prosecutors. He discusses his force of eloquence because his accusers use this topic to say that you should not be mislead by this. Socrates goes on to agree with them by saying he does speak with the force of eloquence but only if that is a force of truth. He compares the eloquence mainly by agreeing with the prosecutors, but getting more specific with that of what he speaks and saying that he speaks only the truth in an elegant and persuasive manner. He also goes on to compare the words spoken and informs everyone that the accusers have only spoken false things about him, and everything that they will hear from his mouth will be nothing but the truth. Socrates mainly compares the eloquence to prove his point that these people accusing him are liars and that everyone should open their minds up a it believe him because he speaks truthfully. He asks his jury to...
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