Socrates claims in Plato’s Crito that “the most important thing is not life, but the good life” (48b). He issued this statement while responding to Crito when he suggested to him that he should escape and go into exile instead of allowing the law to prosecute him for what he did not do. Socrates wanted Crito to understand that he was not ready to break the laws of Athens. Because the Laws existed as a single entity, to break one of them simply meant to break all of them which means that if he agreed
In the following paper I will explain and evaluate Socrates’ position on wisdom. Socrates position on wisdom in the famous work, The Apology, hinges on the belief that wisdom is something that man should constantly try to obtain. Therefore, through self-examination and the realization that no person is inherently wise, he/she should be constantly learning. From the very beginning of The Apology, Socrates begins explaining that he does not feel that he is wise and that he has much to learn. He states
Plato’s Five Dialogue is consist of five sections, all centered around Socrates’s life, before his death. In Apology, Socrates is in a trial, due to being accused of three things: corrupting the youth, not believing in the gods of the city, and believing in supernatural things. At the end of his trial, he is sentenced to death. In Phaedo, we learned that Socrates does not die right after his trial ended but was in prison for a couple of months. Right, before his death he has a talk with many of his
David Thoreau and Socrates, both grealy renowned for their work, serve as examples of how the concept of civil disobedience can be applied in contrary, as well as comparatively, manners, without defying justice. The forms in which Thoreau practices civil disobedience go along the lines
Plato is a dialogue between Euthyphro and Socrates. It is a discussion between the two of them and the subject is “piety”. Socrates asks Euthyphro to define “piety” as Euthyphro claims to have a knowledge of this subject and on Socrates request, he attempts to define it. Socrates does not agree with Euthyphro’s version of piety and keeps pushing him to accurately define it and finally at one point Euthyphro says he is in a hurry and walks away. Socrates is neither agreeing with Euthyphro’s definition
Plato’s Apology and Crito discuss both Socrates’s response to the charges brought against him by various citizens of Athens, as well as the reasoning behind his choice to obey the city by accepting the punishment that was handed down to him. At first glance, Socrates’s sharp words may be viewed as disobedient to Athens. After careful evaluation of Socrates’s speeches and subsequent actions, it is vibrantly clear that Socrates is not undermining the law of the city; he is undermining those who make
In Plato’s Apology, Socrates defends himself against the accusation of corrupting the youth through his teachings. Being found guilty and condemned to death, Socrates believes that he has never wronged anyone and is unwilling to do or say anything to escape death. He encourages the people of Athens to realize that it is more important to be righteous than to fear death. Convinced that he has “never intentionally wronged anyone” through his practice and teachings of philosophy, Socrates is reluctant
highlight this idea that knowledge is indeed power which will be used in support of this argument, and these three are: Plato’s “The Apology”, The Bible’s “Genesis”, and St. Augustine’s “Confessions”. The first passage in which knowledge is an example of power is Plato’s “The Apology”. The whole reason for the actual trial of Socrates is that he was thought by his accusers to be: “…guilty of wrongdoing in that he busies himself studying things in the sky and below the Earth; he makes the worse into the
Socrates spend his life trying to convince people to live a good live. Since that time when Greece was at its golden age, Socrates was thinking on how to let the people of Athens to live a good life. More importantly, he attempted the people of Athens in many ways, but the one he did the most is to be mortal individuals. Socrates was accused by many people through out his life. One of the reasons is being a sophist, which means to make a weaker argument the stronger. However, it is possible to say
Question 2: Who was right: Socrates or Crito? Why were they right? Known as the father of philosophy, Socrates, a proud Greek Athenian, strived to understand and answer the fundamental questions of education, politics, and ethics. At the age of seventy, Socrates was charged before an Athenian widely held court for not believing in the Olympian gods (impiety) and the corruption of youth. Despite the masterful and witty defense (apologia), Socrates could not convince his jury of fellow Athenian citizens