The Republic Essay

Socrates was put on trial with a jury of his peers who were already biased against him. He could have fled, but he chose to face them. This showed fortitude. He was charged with not recognizing the gods, inventing deities, and corrupting the people of Athens. His first and most important counter was the fact that the Oracle of Delphi called him the wisest man. “He asked whether there was anyone wiser than I. The Pythia replied that no one was wiser” (Plato, 4). If the Greeks were so devoted to their

Everyone knows that Greeks invented democracy, but it was not democracy as we know it now-days. The charges that were made to Socrates would be ridiculous today, but in Ancient Greece, they were legitimate crimes. At that time, speaking of other gods, having different ideologies, disagreeing with Athenian politicians, etc. were seen as unacceptable. Socrates was believed to be that kind of man. Plato and Xenophon, two of Socrates students, claimed that because of Socrates openly criticized of Athenian politicians made him gain many enemies. Not to mention that at that time Ancient Greece went through a time of war, famine, loss, and plague. There was crisis in Athens and Socrates came in with his new teachings. Many of Athens thought that his teaching were corrupting the youth, the only people that could now bring Athens forward (cam.ac.uk). But were the accusations true? Was Socrates actually innocent? I believe he was. Three reasons why I believe Socrates was innocent was because Socrates did believe in Athenian gods, he didn’t actually corrupt the youth, and many of the bad things said of Socrates were rumors.

He was born in 428 BCE and saw Greek involved in war with each other as it gets weaker. He was a philosopher and had a great impact on democracy. “He also corrupted the youth of Athens. ”[Document 2] Socrates was convicted of committing corruption and he was anti-democratic.

In the readings by Edmund S. Morgan the problems of the colonists are summed up and able to be understood by everyone who picks up the book. It lists in detail what went on to provoke and then what went on to fix issues in question.

Socrates is brought to trial to address two charges: the first is the fruit of a legacy of embarrassment he has inflicted on the intelligentsia of Athens and the second is the accusation of atheism and corrupting the youth brought to the court by Meletus, Anytus and Lycon. It can be assumed through reading of the footnotes, this trial comes on the heels of a political ordeal in which Athens was briefly ruled by an Oligarchy known as The Thirty Tyrants in 404 BCE. This appears to set the stage for a round of trials and convictions of Athenians who sympathized with the Spartan occupation, the

Socrates was brought into the courts under charges of impiety and corruption of minors. Socrates did not believe in the divinities of the city-state. The punishment decided upon was an execution, in the hope that Socrates would choose exile, a punishment that would have satisfied the jury.

Soldiers received a heavy bombardment of snowballs and rubbish when they opened fire. 3 dead, 8 wounded , including Crispus Attucks.

This charge was partly brought to Socrates because of his claims to lead by an inner "daemon." Since ancient Greece's religion and laws were intertwined, this could've been problematic for many persons in power at the time. Socrates seemingly threatened to undermine the system in which benefited the societies elite. Since, the citizens (500) in his jury were picked at random and were also from the lower classes, all that was needed by the prosecutor(s) is to persuade the jury that Socrates views threatened to undermine society. Infact, this inner "daemon" was actually Socrates's own intuition.

In most circumstances ending the life of a criminal as their punishment usually reflects the magnitude of the crimes that they committed, crimes that often involve the deaths of others or equally heinous actions, yet one historical example stands out for not following this rule. In 399 BC, in Athens, Greece, two men put a meek philosopher named Socrates on trial for two crimes he purportedly committed: not following state gods and corrupting the youth. These charges alleged against Socrates reflected the general sentiment of Athenians regarding Socrates; namely that he was an atheistic charlatan. The jury found Socrates guilty of these crimes and executed, a punishment that does not logically befit the supposed crimes that he committed. No sane or logical jury would find him guilty of such vague claims, especially in such a vehemently democratic polis as Athens, and they would never have executed Socrates for such meager offenses, nonetheless he was. Execution was especially unnecessary because Socrates himself was on the verge of death; he was in his seventies in the Greek era, so he was bound to die soon anyways. The central focus, then, is of understanding how on Earth the birthplace of democracy could have gone so awry and when they tried, convicted, and executed Socrates. Athens sentenced Socrates to death because his beliefs were against the flow of the changing Athenian ideological landscape, people regarded him as a pompous, elitist charlatan who impugned their core

The definition of government, according to Dictionary.com, is the political direction and control exercised over the actions of the inhabitants of communities, societies, and states. However, in the book Legend by Marie Lu, the definition of government is very different. Legend is about two main characters, June and Day, who meet in a surprising scenario and end up working together to bring down the Republic. The theme of government control relates to an ongoing war, the militarization of people, and a rebellious community.

In 399 B.C.E. Athens, Socrates, one of the greatest axial philosophers, was charged with impiety and corruption of the youth by Meletus, Lycon, and Anytus. Socrates was convicted of these accusations and executed. Socrates was one of many great thinkers in Athens, which was experiencing a Golden age as the most progressive and learned democracy in Greece. Strangely, Athens executed Socrates for his speech, which contrasted with Athenian democratic values. Moreover, Socrates was seen as annoying to authorities of the time, but never considered threatening enough to receive punishment to Athens before this. In order for Socrates to be executed, Athens needed to have undergone a deep shift that changed perceptions of Socrates from a gadfly to a danger to society. As a result of a crippling defeat by Sparta in the Peloponnesian Wars, Athens was paranoid of threats to its democracy, Athenian citizens were looking for a scapegoat for their recent troubles, and Socrates made enemies out of powerful politicians and thinkers due to his irritating Socratic method and uncustomary beliefs, therefore, he was easy to blame and execute.

Plato was a philosopher and educator in ancient Greece. He was one of the most important thinkers and writers in the history of Western culture. Plato was born in Athens into a family that was one of the oldest and most distinguished in the city. His father Ariston died when Plato was only a child. The name Plato was a nickname meaning broad shoulders. Plato's real name was Aristocles. Plato had aspirations of becoming a politician, however these hopes were destroyed when his friend Socrates was sentenced to death in 299 B.C. Extremely hurt Plato left Athens and traveled for several years. In 387 B.C., Plato returned to Athens and founded a school of philosophy and science that became known as the Academy. Topics such as astronomy,

Plato was among the most important and creative thinkers of the ancient world. He was born in Athens in 428 BC to an aristocratic and well-off family. Even as a young child Plato was familiar with political life because his father, Ariston was the last king of Athens. Ariston died when Plato was a young boy. However, the excessive Athenian political life, which was under the oligarchical rule of the Thirty Tyrants and the restored democracy, seem to have forced him to give up any ambitions of political life. In 388 BC he journeyed to Italy and Sicily, where he became the friend of Dionysius the ruler of Syracuse, and his brother-in-law Dion. The following year he returned to Athens, where he devoted his

Greek philosopher, born into an aristocratic Athenian family in the year 427BC, he was expected to take up a political

The trial of Socrates is well-known throughout the modern world. It is a historical event that ties together philosophy, literature, and law. However, do we stop to consider whether or not Socrates was truly guilty of the crimes he was accused with. I believe Socrates was innocent on all charges, since he sufficiently proved that he did believe in the gods and was not corrupting the youth.