The Death of Socrates

Socrates was a Western Ancient Athenian Greek philosopher who lived from 469 BCE until his death in 399 BCE. He was a student to another philosopher, Sophists, Socrates was different from most Greek philosophers he wanted to get at the truth and find out how one can truly be ‘good’ and moral in life. “To Socrates the soul is identified with the mind; it is the seat of reason and capable of finding the ethical truths, which will restore meaning and value of life” (ADD IN-TEXT CITATION SEMINAR). We continue to use many of Socrates teachings today, such as, ‘The Socratic method’, which is known as asking a question and within these questions you lead it to the answer you wanted to hear, many uses this as a teaching technique and is shown to be highly effective. A great number of Athenians looked up to Socrates and considered him the wise man of Athens, he had many followers whom would ask questions and seek answers. As popularity and following of Socrates grew so did accusations. The charges laid on Socrates by the Athenians were unjust and therefore his death was highly wrong in the eyes of true democracy that Athens was apparently known for. In this paper, I will discuss how Socrates was wrongfully convicted for the corruption of the youth despite having many young followers, introducing new Gods while still being considered an Atheist, and the main reason he was seen as a threat to Athens was that he brought change to the city.

Socrates and Jesus were two teachers whose guidance people still follow today. They were both sentenced to death for their teachings even though there were witnesses to their innocence. Socrates was accused of corrupting the youth and practicing atheism by three men, Lytus, Anytus, and Meletus. Plato, Socrates’ student, recorded Socrates’ defense speech. Socrates succeeded in getting some of the jury to see the truth, but in the end, he was sentenced to the death penalty. The Gospel of Luke is a section in the New Testament that reveals the Lord Jesus Christ and all he taught until he was killed. Jesus ' teachings and preaching are brought out as he healed the wounded and sick, and brought hope to the desperate. Jesus was also sentenced to death, but death did not keep him from teaching and after three days he resurrected and continued to teach. These men both died for truth and accepted their punishments. Socrates and Jesus have some similarities in their teachings and experiences, but Jesus focused more on shaping others and taught the “Christian life”, while Socrates shaped his students by teaching them how to take a different path than what the majority follows.

By viewing the painting The Death of Socrates by Jacques-Louis David, Socrates’ loyalty to the Athenian government was far more important to him than his own death or friendship. He was more interested in teaching his students about his belief in reason and the law of justice before he died. Still, the students and friends were arguing with him and trying to convince him to renounce his teachings. Socrates was strong in telling his students how it was for the good of society that he drinks the poison hemlock. He was not going to change what he was teaching all along when he truly believed in the democratic Athenian government laws. Socrates’ loyalty to the government was much stronger than the ties of friendship or acquaintances.

“the hour of departure has arrived, and we go our ways – I to die, and

One of the complaints leveled against Socrates is that he spends his life analyzing people to see if they are truly wise and he goes out of his way to make sure that people know if they are not. In his defense, he argues that him being absent from the society will cause the society harm because the individuals will not know whether they are wise or not. After Socrates lays out his case as to why he shouldn’t be convicted the jury nevertheless decides to put him to death anyway. Socrates takes this moment to stoke the

Through several dialogues Plato gives readers accounts of Socrates’ interactions with other Athenians. While some may think of him as a teacher of sorts, Socrates is adamant in rejecting any such claim (Plato, Apology 33a-b). He insists that he is not a teacher because he is not transferring any knowledge from himself to others, but rather assisting those he interacts with in reaching the truth. This assistance is the reason Socrates walks around Athens, engaging in conversation with anyone that he can convince to converse with him. An assertion he makes at his trial in Plato’s Apology is at the center of what drives Socrates in his abnormal ways, “the unexamined life is not worth living for a human being” (38a). Socrates, through aporia, looks to lead an examined life to perfect his soul and live as the best person he can be. This paper looks to examine the ‘unexamined life’ and the implications rooted in living a life like Socrates’.

In philosophy class this semester we spoke a lot about Socrates and his trial. We were required to read the dialogue ‘Apology’ by Plato. The ‘Apology’ Dialogue is what Plato recorded during the speech Socrates gave to the court defending himself against the charges of "corrupting the young, and by not believing in the gods in whom the city believes” these two were the main charges, but underneath that there were also other significant charges such as being considered an antidemocratic or pro-Spartan, sophistry, and being lampooned by Aristophanes in the comedy “clouds”. "Apology" in this sense has the meaning of speaking in defense of ones beliefs or actions. The trial is usually categorized into two interpretations which are: Socrates as a Martyr and Socrates as an Antidemocratic. The first interpretation which says Socrates trial and death was Socrates acting as a martyr; that interpretation is considered more “traditional” and “standard” compared to the ‘radical’ interpretation that stated that Socrates was Antidemocratic.

In the trial of Socrates, I juror number 307, Ryan Callahan vote the defendant is Not Guilty on the first charge of Corrupting the youth. My justifications for this vote are as follows. Socrates didn 't corrupt the youth, he just shared his ideas with them and they in turn chose the path to take these ideas. Part of understanding this case is understand the time in which the case was held. This time being 399 B.C., a time in which Athens was a free democratic city, a town which prided itself at the time on the fact that its citizens had much freedom, particularly freedom of speech. Socrates believed that only people who were educated should rule the people, which meant that people were not capable of government participation

The portrayal of Socrates, through the book “the trial and death of Socrates” is one that has created a fairly controversial character in Western history. In many ways, Socrates changed the idea of common philosophy in ancient Greece; he transformed their view on philosophy from a study of why the way things are, into a consideration man. Specifically, he analyzed the virtue and health of the human soul. Along side commending Socrates for his strong beliefs, and having the courage to stand by those convictions, Socrates can be commended for many other desirable characteristics. Some of those can include being the first martyr to die for his philosophical beliefs and having the courage to challenge indoctrinated cultural norms is part of

The problem with Socrates concerns the problem with the role of value and reason. Nietzsche believes that the bulk of philosophers claim that life is a corrupt grievance for mankind. Nietzsche reasoned that these life deniers were decadents of Hellenism, as a symptom of some underlying melancholy. For someone to paint life in such a negative light they must have suffered a great deal through the course of their own life. Furthermore, these no-sayers agreed in various physiological ways and thus adopted the same pessimistic attitudes towards life. Socrates was ugly, alike decadent criminals and by ways of these similarities was decadent as well. Nietzsche also claims ugliness as a physiological symptom of life in its decline supported by studies in phenology.

The question of why Socrates was executed and if he deserved the charges put against him has been asked by historians for centuries.

Throughout the course of the Phaedo, Socrates argues that the soul is immortal. Because he believes that his soul will live on forever, Socrates claims that he is not afraid to die. Socrates was sentenced to death and due to the fact that he took the poison earlier than when was necessary, many believe that he committed suicide. Contrary to what may be presumed about Socrates’ death, I will argue that he is a martyr and did not commit suicide.

The first painting, Death of Socrates by Jacques-Louis David, depicts one of the great philosophers, Socrates being sentenced to death. Socrates was a famous Athenian philosopher. It was through the works of Plato, Socrates’s student, that we learn about the trials and imprisonment that Socrates endured for his way of thinking. Through David’s painting style and use of Neoclassicism, viewers can understand the significance.

Not only looking at the mere representation of the figure who is Socrates, but by examining how he is situated among others in the painting also uncovers meaning in of itself. Studying the way that Socrates’ body is situated you can see that the artist is trying to make a statement of nobility in self-sacrifice. The finger of Socrates is pointed upward and is in the highest position in the chamber. Much like a mountain commands the landscape, so does Socrates finger in a room full of disarray and uncertainty. This can also tells us that although ready to die and in his final hour, his teachings and beliefs will continue to live on. Although Socrates is on his deathbed he still continues to teach and philosophize.

The Death of Socrates was painted by the French painter Jacques-Louis David during the Neo-classical era in 1787. The painting illustrates the execution the Philosopher Socrates as told by Plato in his Phaedo. In 399 B.C, the Athenian court had put Socrates on trial for talking about things in the sky and below the earth, corrupting the minds of the youth, and not believing in the gods, but in other spiritual things. Socrates was then sentenced to death by drinking a poisoned hemlock. In Plato’s Phaedo Death Scene and Apology, both works recount the trial and death scene of Socrates. David, later on, paint the death scene of Socrates inspired by the Phaedo Death Scene. Socrates gives his last lesson to his students while calmly facing