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Asclepius For Death Analysis

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Readers of the Phaedo may be puzzled by Socrates’ last words, regarding the need for a sacrifice to Asclepius. Nietzsche famously argued that Socrates is thanking Asclepius for death, since life is such a disease. The reader may agree with this interpretation, because of Socrates’ final moments as he welcomes death with open arms. However, Socrates reflects on how the soul still lives on, even though the body does not, death just being the process of this occurrence. In this paper, I will argue against Nietzsche’s interpretation of his last words; Socrates apparently meaning that death is a cure for the ills of life, and offer my own interoperation; Socrates meaning that death is an illness and resurrection is the cure, and that the cock was used to thank Asclepius for new life. To advance this position, I will provide evidence, that will support my way of thinking, from Socrates’ arguments for the soul 's immortality: The Cyclical Argument, The Theory of Recollection Argument, The Affinity Argument, and The Argument from Form …show more content…

In order to gain this knowledge, to cycle it into the next life, living through one’s current life is a must. Living life is like learning a series of lessons to prepare one’s self for the next journey their soul takes on. This just goes to show why I believe Socrates’ appreciates life, while not being afraid of death. He uses his philosophical wisdom from this life, knowing that it has prepared him for the next he will take on. Socrates third argument for the immortality of the soul, the Affinity Argument, displays, that the body resembles that which is visible and mortal, while the soul resembles that which is invisible and holy. Because of this, it is said that while the body may be visible after death in the form of a corpse, as the body is mortal and the soul is godly, making the soul outlive the

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In response to the long-standing philosophical question of immorality, many philosophers have posited the soul criterion, which asserts the soul constitutes personal identity and survives physical death. In The Myth of the Soul, Clarence Darrow rejects the existence of the soul in his case against the notion of immortality and an afterlife. His primary argument against the soul criterion is that no good explanation exists for how a soul enters a body, or when its beginning might occur. (Darrow 43) After first explicating Darrow 's view, I will present what I believe is its greatest shortcoming, an inconsistent use of the term soul, and argue that this weakness impacts the overall strength of his argument.

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Within Book III, the question of how to choose their rulers is brought to the attention of both Socrates and our interlocutor – Glaucon. They discuss the best methods for this selection and what a good ruler should and should not be. This dialogue opens the discussion of finding a falsehood that can persuade even rulers and possibly create a better city, leading to the usage of the Myth of Metals – the Noble Lie. Glaucon at first immediately agrees with Socrates’ point that guardians must believe they will always have to do and discern what is good for the city and never try to do the opposite.

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After being sentenced to death, he doesn’t fear from the unknown and instead thinks that death can also be a blessing from god to be away from evil on the earth. Furthermore he says that death can be like taking a trip to another place to get rid of the fake people. Also, it would be not smart to fear about life after death when you are actually alive. Socrates rather chooses to treat the death as a grace of the god and believes that a good person gets good blessings whether he or she is alive or dead. Also the reasoning at the end of the quotes shows his philosophy that an assumption cannot be always predicted correct or accurate if it is not proved in

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No matter which path death is, death is a gain. One will either be a peaceful sleep, or a journey to another world filled with intelligent people and knowledge. He had support to his theory, but only talked about conversing with people from the past. The apology is repetitive in the last two paragraphs because Socrates desired to talk to all these different people. He did not clarify as to why living on Earth was cruel and that death was the only answer.

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The significance with the first teaching and the unexamined life quote go hand in hand. By questioning and looking at things through the way he wants to live his life he is at harmony with himself. By examining people, places, or questions he is living a life to which brings him peace. Socrates didn’t have the riches or wasn’t high up on the totem pull in Athens. What he did have though was the happiness and knowledge he thought to be enough for a life worth

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In Plato’s dialogue Phaedo, he explains the soul and comes to the conclusion that the soul is immortal. Through describing the last hours of Socrates life before his execution, he lays out three arguments in support of the idea that while the body may cease to exist the soul cannot perish. In this paper, I will explicate Socrates three arguments for the immortality of the soul and their objections. Then I will argue on the presupposition of the Law of Conservation of Mass, that the universe, entailing the soul, must be cyclical. The Law of Conservation of Mass

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However, the number three cannot ever be even for it holds a natural form of oddity that cannot be changed, the same is found with immortality. A soul cannot admit to death, which is the opposite of its essence immortality just as the number three cannot admit to being even. Leading to Plato’s conclusion of how a soul then must have to retreat, connecting back to Socrates believing death is best characterized by the soul separating from

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In Defense of the Fear of Death: Analyzing “Socrates’ Apology” Within “The Apology”, Socrates makes many claims about life and its meaning. One of the most controversial claims he makes is that fearing death is illogical and “amounts simply to thinking one is wise when one is not (40)”. I believe this claim is wrong for two reasons. Firstly, his claim comes from a place of ignorance towards fear and how it works. Also, this claim shows his hypocrisy, as his claim that death is not to be feared shows that he thinks he is wise when he is not.

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In Plato’s, Phaedo, one of the arguments that Socrates makes for justifying his theory about the soul being immortal is the argument of opposites. The argument of opposites is found from 70c to 72c in the Phaedo. The argument is not logically valid as there are a few fallacies that occur with the definition of opposites with which Socrates defines his argument. This argument ultimately fails at being logically valid as contrary to premise 1, all things that have an opposite do not come from only their opposites. Socrates also does not specify in this argument whether he is referring to the soul dying or the body dying in the final premises.

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