The Apology is Plato's recounting of Socrates's defense at this trial for atheism and corruption of the youth of Athens. Plato wrote the Apology to...
The main idea of Plato's Apology is that the judges who condemned Socrates to death, and the climate of opinion in Athens that led to the charges a...
Plato's Apology is his defense of Socrates. In the Apology, Plato re-tells the speeches of Socrates to the judges at his trial. Plato's purpose i...
Plato's The Apology is an account of the speech Socrates makes at the trial in which he is charged with not recognizing the gods recognized by the state, inventing new deities, and corrupting the youth of Athens. Socrates' speech, however, is by no means an "apology" in our modern understanding of the word.
When the jury rejects his suggestion and sentences him to death, Socrates stoically accepts the verdict with the observation that no one but the gods know what happens after death and so it would be foolish to fear what one does not know.
The Apology. The life and teachings of Socrates (c. 469-399 B.C.) stand at the foundation of Western philosophy. He lived in Athens during a time of transition (Athens' defeat at the hands of Sparta in the Peloponnesian War (431-404 B.C.) ended the Golden Age of Athenian civilization) and had a tremendous influence on the Athenian youth of his day. ...
Plato's dialogues are generally classed into early, middle, and late periods. The early dialogues were written soon after Socrates' death, and in them we get the clearest picture of Socrates and Socratic philosophy. As Plato matured, however, he developed an increasingly distinct voice and philosophical outlook.
The figure of Socrates in the middle and late dialogues (for example, The Republic and Phaedo) is more of a mouthpiece for Plato's own views. The Apology is one of Plato's earlier dialogues, in which we find none of his more characteristic doctrines, but rather a stolid attempt to present an honest and sympathetic portrait of his mentor.
Plato's thought is mostly recorded in the form of dialogues which feature Socrates as the protagonist. Apparently, the Socratic dialogue was a genre form at the time; not just Plato, but many of Socrates' other students recorded philosophical debates in this form.
To that end, he founded the Academy around 385 B.C., which counted Aristotle among its students. The Academy lasted in one form or another until 527 A.D., 912 years in total, and served as the prototype for the Western university system.
Plato wrote the Apology to demonstrate the unjust nature of the trial and to reveal that Socrates , not the judges who condemned him, was representative of truth.
Most scholars believe that the Apology was the first of Plato's Socratic dialogues, but the date of its composition can only be estimated to be sometime between 399 and 387 BCE , after Socrates's death and before Plato's first excursion to Syracuse.
Plato became part of a circle of followers impressed by Socrates's emphasis on determining (as stated in The Republic) ''the right conduct of life.'' The impression Socrates made upon the young Plato must have been enormous. His interaction with Socrates and the effect of Socrates's execution changed the direction of Plato's life.
Apologia means defense in Greek. The Apology is Plato's presentation of the Defense of Socrates in which Plato puts Athens on trial for Socrates's execution.
Socrates attempted to explain this prejudice against him with a story about Chaerophon, a fellow member of the democracy familiar to the judges.
Socrates concluded that the Oracle meant ''human wisdom is of little or no value. And it appears that he does not really say this of Socrates, but merely used my name, and makes me an example, as if he were to say: 'This one of you, O human beings, is wisest who, like Socrates, recognizes that he is in truth of no account in respect to wisdom.'''
The text and the title. The work was written by Plato who was present at the trial. At the time he was 28 years old and a great admirer of Socrates, so the portrait and the speech may be embellished to cast both in a good light. Even so, some of what Socrates' detractors called his "arrogance" comes through. The Apology is most definitely not an ...
Plato's Apology is one of the most famous and admired texts in world literature. It offers what many scholars believe is a fairly reliable account of what the Athenian philosopher Socrates (469 BCE - 399 BCE) said in court on the day that he was tried and condemned to death on charges of impiety and corrupting the youth.
He even rejects the idea of staying in Athens and keeping his mouth shut. He can't stop doing philosophy, he says, because "the unexamined life is not worth living.". Perhaps in response to the urgings of his friends, Socrates eventually proposes a fine, but the damage was done.
Socrates' real defense: a defense of the philosophical life. The heart of the Apology is Socrates' account of the way he has lived his life. He recounts how his friend Chaerephon once asked the Delphic Oracle if anyone was wiser than Socrates. The Oracle said that no -one was.
By making this argument, he proves that true moral integrity means acting ethically not only as an individual, but also as a member of society. Socrates makes it overwhelmingly clear in his defense ...
Quite apart from the question of reputation, gentlemen, I do not think it right to supplicate the jury and to be acquitted because of this, but to teach and persuade them. It is not the purpose of a juryman’s office to give justice as a favor to whoever seems good to him, but to judge according to law, and this he has sworn to do. We should not accustom you to perjure yourselves, nor should you make a habit of it. This is irreverent conduct for either of us.
As such, he does not apologize in court for his actions, thereby proving the strength of his moral integrity. Not only does Socrates insist that the threat of death will not make him recant his ways, he also upholds that he will continue to enforce his values if the jury acquits him. He explains Anytus’s belief that, ...