“Athens, birthplace of democracy, executed the philosopher Socrates in the year 399 bce for the crime of impiety” (Nails 27) Why did Athens wait so long to put Socrates on trial? In order to explore my topic and try to answer my question, I began reading three scholarly sources, which gave me a better understanding on why he could of been put to trial. It still raises the same question as to what really happened and why was Socrates sent to trial at such a late age in life. Socrates throughout his life has been teaching in Athens unbothered until he was sent to trial at the age of seventy.
One area of interest is how Socrates was put to trial because he was corrupting the youth. They don’t have evidence, but with some research they seem to mention how people hold Socrates accountable for Critias and Alcibiades actions. “The prime movers in both of the anti-democratic movements were former pupils…show more content… Socrates was known for always questioning the life and value of humans. His questioning could of offended many citizens. Doug Linder described in his article about Socrates, “Striking at the heart of Athenian democracy, he contemptuously criticized the right of every citizen to speak in the Athenian assembly.” (Linder 2002) His open mindedness probably annoyed a couple of people because he would question their beliefs. For example, when Socrates kept questioning Euthyphro about holiness, he ended up walking out on Socrates because he couldn’t answer Socrates definition on holiness. Many free thinkers were thought as being dangerous because it is questioning the ways of their beliefs. “The Athenians, proud inventors of democracy, halted scientific and philosophical progress by persecuting those whose ideas they judged to be dangerous, above all Socrates” (Janko 61). Socrates free spirited mind could possibly be the main reason why he was condemned to many jurors in