Ben Lonergan
Period five
October 5, 2013
Eurolit
1. When Socrates asks if he may speak the way he usually does, he is asking if he may speak with eloquence and truth. The jury had been warned to be aware of the force of Socrates’ eloquence; however, Socrates argued that he was no more eloquent than any other man and thus “by the force of eloquence they mean the force of truth; for then I do admit that I am eloquent.” (19) By defending his own truthfulness Socrates comes across as self centered and egotistical. Furthermore, Socrates wishes to speak in a manner that will show his true intelligence and ideas.
2. a) When confronted with the issue of his older charges, Socrates describes them as being “far more dangerous.” (20) Socrates belief that older charges are more dangerous stems from the idea that said charges has influenced younger minds, and it is this that will ultimately condemn him. For, while many saw his actions in person, it is the young minds that had been molded by false beliefs.
b) Aristophanes has accused Socrates of “saying that he [Socrates] can walk on air, and talking a deal of nonsense concerning matters of which I do not pretend to know either much or little.” (21) However, Socrates combats this accusation by pleading that he has nothing to do with theses studies, as “very many of those here are witnesses to the truth of this.” (21)
c) The second accusation against Socrates is that he is a teacher. Socrates does not speak much to the accusation however hold the firm belief that “if a man is able to teach, I honor him for being paid.” (21) It is Socrates firm defense of the world of knowledge that will ultimately lead to his execution.
3. a) Socrates came to have the reputation for wisdom came from the wisdom he possesses. One can see that he flaunts his wisdom a lot when he tells the court he has “such wisdom as is attainable by man.” (22) By saying “by man” Socrates shows that he does not wish to exceed the bounds meant for him by the gods, and thus face the ultimate price.
b) Socrates responds to the accusations against himself by saying that it is far worse that “[a man] knows nothing, and thinks that he knows.” For by thinking he knows everything, a man deprives himself of the opportunity to learn and know more. Because of this it is wiser that “I [Socrates] neither know, nor think that I know.” (23)
c) To conclude the main section of his argument, Socrates feels that “God only is truly wise, and in this oracle he means to say that the wisdom of men is little to nothing.” (24) However, despite his belief that god is the wisest, he believes that the wisest man “knows that his wisdom is in truth worth nothing.” (24) By believing that men who search for glory in their work are not as wise, Socrates angers many of the people of which he studies, for unlike himself, their wisdom is purely derived from a need for glory.
d) Another prevalent thing angering people about Socrates is the way that many of the richer classes “come about me at their own accord; they like to hear the pretenders examined, and they often imitate me [Socrates], and examine others themselves.” (24) Socrates does not like that many men imitate his teachings without the proper evidence t back up their thoughts, and is the very same predicament that angers Socrates about those he teaches.
4. a) Socrates is trying to disprove the accusations that he is corrupting young men by encouraging them to challenge their beliefs. When he questions Meletus regarding the laws and who makes them, Socrates asks why “every Athenian improves them and elevates them; all with the exception of myself [Socrates]. (26) Socrates is trying to prove that many people hold influence on the way things are, and he cannot be held the sole reason for the change in young men’s minds.
b) With long, absurd logic, Socrates hope to prove that he had no reason to purposefully corrupt anyone, most specifically “man with whom [Socrates] must live is corrupted by me, I am very likely to be harmed by him.” (27) Socrates is aiming to prove that he has no reason to corrupt men on purpose, because those very same men could easily kill him.
5. Through his course of questioning, Socrates leads Meletus to contradict himself. In this contradiction, immediately after Socrates admits to teaching to believe in some gods, Meletus calls him a “complete atheist.” (27) By saying that Socrates is an atheist, he attempts to disprove the very truth of which Socrates had just spoken to the court.
6. a) Socrates believes a good man “ought only to consider whether in doing anything he is doing right or wrong.” (29) In other words, Socrates wants all men to act not in fear of death, but in how the choices they make will affect others, and whether or not the choices are good or bad. According to Socrates, “a man who is good ought not to calculate the chance of living or dying.” It is because of Socrates beliefs that man should not worry only about himself that civilization has survived to this day. Without taking the considerations of others into hand, we would be unable to survive as a human race.
b) One should not fear death because death is not necessarily a bad thing. While many believe that the fear of death is wise, Socrates argues, “this fear of death is indeed the pretence of wisdom, and not real wisdom.” (30) Furthermore, if one fears death, and death is unknown, than the fear of death must also be the fear of the unknown. If one fears the unknown he or she can never fully grasp wisdom; because, they will never be able to try knew, unknown experiences.
c) Meletus’ previous ideas of Socrates being an atheist are disproven when Socrates states that he “shall obey god rather than you [the jury].” (30) At this point in the trial one can easily see that Socrates will be put to death after he states that while I have life and strength I shall never cease from the practice and teachings of philosophy.” (30) In other words, Socrates is condemning himself to death as opposed to abandoning the belief system that he has helped to define to this day.
d) According to Socrates, the Athenian people must care less about “laying up the greatest amount of money and honor and reputation.” (30) Socrates considers it shameful that the people of Athens would devote such attention to menial material objects. Throughout his trial Socrates stresses to the jury the importance of “wisdom and truth and the greatest improvement of the soul.” (30) To Socrates, the pursuit of anything else seems meaningless.
e) Socrates begins to argue that the Athenian people should acquit him of the charges brought against him. Throughout this portion of the trial, Socrates begins to call out the people of Athens on things he believes they do wrong. Socrates’s plea claims that the people of Athens must “first and chiefly care about the greatest improvement of the soul.” (31) In other words the Athenian people must begin to better themselves and the people around them with, or without, the guidance of Socrates.
f) Socrates disproves the belief that one can find virtue only by having money by telling the jury, “virtue is not given by money, but that from virtue come money and every other good man.” (31)
g) The Athenian people would be harming themselves if they put Socrates to death; because it is Socrates that most greatly influences the people of Athens. Socrates believes that he is the “gadfly which God has given the state.” (31) Furthermore, Socrates emphasizes that God has given him the duty to guide the people in their thoughts and beliefs, and mold them into the ideal people.
h) To prove that he does not take payment for his conversations with people, Socrates tells that “any one, whether he be rich or poor, may ask and answer me and listen to my words.” (33) By saying that he does not take payment, Socrates proves that he is simply trying to share his ideas, and not perform for financial gain.
7. a) Socrates speaks of the voices in his conscience that allow him to come up with the ideas he tells to others; he says “[It is] a voice that comes to me and always forbids me to do something I am going to do, but never commands me to do anything.” (32) By saying that the voice does not command him, Socrates opens the jury’s eyes to the idea that he is not controlled by the voices he has but merely passes along their messages to others.
b) Socrates aims to convince his judges that he is not going to do something incorrectly or against his better judgment simply because he is told to do so. Socrates is giving the judges a choice; either kill him and suffer the guilt, or allow Socrates to keep professing his ideas and wisdom.
c) Early in his speech Socrates develops the idea that he is not forcing ideas on anyone, but that they come and listen to him. He talks about the ways that he has never required payment or talked to any one kind of person, but that instead, Socrates accepted any one to share his opinions with.
8. a) Throughout his trial, Socrates insults politicians and the political system. One such insult comes when he is describing how his life would have been different had he been a politician. Socrates tells the jury that no man could have “always supported the right and supported justice.” (33) By saying that neither he nor any other man could have lived always in truth, Socrates is insulting the politicians as well as the Athenian people. Socrates’ insult draws particular attention to the seemingly secretive and untruthful lives of politicians.
b) Many people sought out Socrates to talk and listen to his ideas because he opened their eyes to ideas they had never seen before. Socrates believed that “they like to hear the cross-examination of the pretenders wisdom.” (34)
c) Unhappy with the case brought against him, Socrates took on a new strategy to refute the accusations brought against himself. Socrates posits “if I am really corrupting the youth, and have corrupted some of them already, […] [They] should come forward as accusers and take their revenge.” (34) By calling forward those he has supposedly corrupted, Socrates buys himself a chance at having his trial acquitted; however, he is not quite so lucky.
9. a) Socrates has the opportunity to forfeit his beliefs and teachings to attempt to save himself. However, Socrates holds his ideals above all else and refuses to betray himself in an attempt to live. Socrates would rather die professing hi ideas then be forced to stop sharing them all together.
b) When the end of Socrates trial arrives, he asks merely one thing, that the judge “will judge according to the laws and not according to to his own good pleasure.” (35) By asking for fairness and refusing to petition the judge, Socrates shows his respect for the court and how he will not blame or question a man who is merely doing his job, even if it costs him the ultimate price.
10. a) Socrates believed that men of Athens were too focused on fame, fortune, and power that they neglected to experience life. He emphasizes that he has lived his life with the purpose to have all the experiences he can, and share his ideas, even without payment.
b) Socrates proposes that there “can be no more fitting reward then maintenance in the Prytaneum.” (36)
c) Socrates believes he deserves this consequence because it “gives the appearance of happiness.” (37)
11. Socrates believes that the greatest good of man is the pursuit of wisdom and knowledge and that a person should live a life of intrigue and investigation into the world around them. He rejects being quiet because he believes the ideas he has to share are more important than death itself. Even though Socrates was killed, his messages live on to this vary day and continue to influence our society.
12. a) When the assembly returns with the death sentence, Socrates comically remarks that they are wasting their time. He believes this because he is “far advanced in years, as you may perceive, and not far from death.” (38) By saying that the assembly is wasting their time, he is making light of the very instituition that is condemning him.
b) Socrates rejects the way that he had not acted the way the assembly wished and caved in to the stress of the situation. “I had not the boldness or impudence or inclination to address you as you would have liked me to address you, weeping and wailing and lamenting.” (38)
13. a) Socrates does not fear death, because there is no reason to. The fer of death is simply the fear of the unknown and because Socrates does not fear the unknown he has no reason to fear death. He tells the jury that the voices iun his head have given him no reason to fear death. Despite all of the above, Socrates biggest reason for not fearing death is because “no evil can happen to a good man, either in life or after death.” (41)
b) At the end of his trial, Socrates states that he does not fear death due to two reasons. The first of these two is that he will be able to “continue my [his] search into true and false knowledge.” (40) Socrates’ Second reason is that he may have the opportunity to be reborn as an animal or object in the world.
14. Socrates asks the assembly to punish his sons should they not follow in his footsteps. “I would have you trouble them, as I have troubled you, if they seem to care about riches, or anything, more than virtue.” (41)