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Comparing Plato's Apology And The Crito

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In Plato’s the Apology, we see Socrates fighting for his innocence in the court of law and presenting reasons to why he should not be charged with the crimes that his accusers say he is guilty of. Although most of the accusations that are placed against Socrates are not truly logical, he still fights for his freedom in an honorable fashion. In the Apology and the Crito, Socrates is both conflicted with his inner moral voice and the laws of Athens. Although Socrates knows that the charges that he is being tried for are foolish, he still has to fight for his innocence in a respectable manner. Socrates states that the people of Athens benefit from his teaching and he cannot be put in jail as this would hinder the future of the people. Although …show more content…

Crito is shocked and confused when Socrates turns down his escape plan, because of the fight that he had put up in court to prove his innocence. Crito asks Socrates why he is not making an effort to escape jail and Socrates states that he is just an old man and is no longer a benefit to society. In this paper, I argue that there is indeed a tension between Socrates view on the charges that he was accused of in the Apology versus his views of the charges in the Crito. There are many occasions throughout these stories that support Socrates change in perspective on his charges that will further be discussed in this paper. Socrates is indeed fighting to prove his innocence in the Apology, but in the Crito, he has a dramatic attitude change to the point where he feels that he needs to sit in prison and face the consequences that he has acquired for the crimes that he knows that he did …show more content…

Socrates is actively working to defend his case and is not going conform to the beliefs that he is a criminal. He brings up the wiseness of these three men and the various charges that they have accused him of (corrupting the youth, being a “busy body”, studying objects in the sky, charging a fee for the youth to learn, etc). Socrates tells the story of his venture to the Oracle of Delphi and how the Oracle confirmed that Socrates is the wisest man in the world. Once he tells this to the jury, he proceeds to tell how the men that are prosecuting him are not wise at all and states that he only acknowledges wise men and ignores the opinion of men that are not wise. Socrates is making the claim that if he is the wisest man and he knows what he is doing, then why are these charges being placed against him by men that are not wise? If Socrates were to be proven guilty of the “crimes” that these men are accusing him of, he worries that this would influence his wiseness and decline the abilities that he is able to do, such as teach philosophy to the young. Throughout this entire book, I noticed how hard Socrates was fighting for his innocence, not for himself, but for the good of the other people around him. Socrates states that if he is proven guilty, then the young would not have a mentor in their lives teaching them ways to become wise. Socrates continues to fight

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The dialogue between friends, Crito and Socrates, shows the similarities in each thought process as both men are eager to display their integrity to their community. My analysis will show an evaluation of the parallels between Crito’s and Socrates’ understanding of what is morally appropriate. First, I will elaborate on Crito’s argument in which a plan to escape prison is the best choice for both himself and Socrates. Second, it will be important to discuss Socrates’ rebuttal to Crito. This comparison will be accomplished in this paper by contrasting both of their viewpoints.

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1373 Words | 6 Pages

In the Apology by Plato, Socrates defends himself against his accusers in court, and begins by declaring that he is not an especially great speaker but that he only speaks the truth. In this, he tells his accusers that they should not fear him but only the truth itself. In the depiction of Socrates' last speech, he makes a bold claim that he has been deemed the wisest man in Athens by the god of Delphi ( Plato, ., Jowett, n.d. ). He goes on to explain that while he searched for those that thought themselves wise,

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1297 Words | 6 Pages

The trial starts out with Socrates talking about his accusers, almost making him forget that what they said wasn't true. He also said that he was surprised by one of the things they said and this was that the jury he is talking to should be on their guard because of the power of his words. The trial goes on and the jury listens to him. One of the beliefs that Socrates had was that you should look for knowledge rather than take things at face value. Another

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157 Words | 1 Pages

In the dialogue of “Crito,” written by Plato, Socrates and Crito are in a situation where they are debating if Socrates should stay in jail or escape jail. Crito believes that Socrates should escape jail because if he does not, he would be betraying his children. Crito supports his argument by also explaining that the government was wrong about putting Socrates in jail and he should therefore, escape. Socrates considers Crito’s argument but then states that he shall stay in jail, for it is his purpose of obeying the government. Socrates explains his reasonings by creating imaginary conversations of having a talk with the jury.

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973 Words | 4 Pages

In Plato’s Apology, Meletus brings Socrates to court. There are two charges being brought against Socrates at trial: corrupting the youth and impiety. Despite the meaning of the term “apology,” Socrates is not apologizing for his actions. Instead, he attempts to defend himself and his behavior. Before Socrates speaks about his current charges, he addresses old charges that were once brought upon him.

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1678 Words | 7 Pages

With the Apology, and the Crito, Socrates comes to delve into his many teachings and finds himself put to death with the words of wisdom that have been passed down generation after generation. Socrates for many in this present day is a man of many words and great teachings, but anyone but Socrates thought differently, in Athens people thought of him as an annoyance rather than an integral part of society. As Socrates stood in front of the counsel of judges, he stood for what he thought was right and never changed opinion of himself or of his words. That’s why Socrates is still talked about in classrooms everywhere today.

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1013 Words | 5 Pages

Even though Socrates claims to be innocent of the charges brought against him, he is ultimately sentenced to death. After he hears the jury's decision, Socrates is sent to jail to await his execution. Crito arrives before Socrates is scheduled for execution and offers him a chance to escape. Crito believes the jury's decision was unjust. In Crito's eyes, Socrates is innocent and therefore has the right to escape. However, even though Crito believes Socrates has the right to escape, Socrates disagrees with him.

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His goal was to make the court understand his beliefs prove which type of knowledge is worth knowing. When talking about the wise man he examined, Socrates said, “Neither of us actually knows what Beauty and Goodness are, but he thinks he knows, even though he doesn’t; whereas I neither know nor think I know.” This shows that Socrates proved he was more wise than the titled wise man because instead of faking the knowledge, that wasn’t too important, he accepted that he did not know which would result in him then seeking for

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961 Words | 4 Pages

In the Apology Socrates defends himself against the charges brought against him by his prosecutor Meletus in two ways. In the first way Socrates describes his method and

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560 Words | 3 Pages

Socrates claims that he did not consciously corrupt the youth of Athens, and he gives many reasons why he is not at fault for these actions. In his defense to the jury, he tells them that by looking at the facts, they will see Meletus is accusing him of something that is not true. The way Socrates defends himself is well-thought out and logical. He ask Meletus a serious of questions and Meletus answers, Socrates then moves on to the next question to support his claim.

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606 Words | 3 Pages

In the reading of “Plato Apology”, Socrates’ vindicates what he values and beliefs to a jury to prove his innocence. Indeed, Miletus a poet, Anytus a craftsmen and Lycon a politician brought an oral charges against Socrates’ attested him of impiety and corrupting youth, required him to appear before the King Archon the legal

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740 Words | 3 Pages

He attempts this by trying to appeal to their sense of duty to the state. Socrates explains that what he does, teaching without charge and questioning so-called wise men and pretenders of knowledge, is his duty to the state, keeping it from becoming stagnant. Socrates reminds the court, that even though he is a wise man, he is “of flesh and blood” (Plato). He mentions his sons, stating he has three of them and that two of them are still young. He tells the court “I will not bring any of them hither in order to petition you for an acquittal” (Plato) yet his simple mentioning of them is an effort to play on the emotions of the

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1021 Words | 5 Pages

In Apology, Socrates faces possible execution as he stands trial in front of his fellow Athenian men. This jury of men must decide whether Socrates has acted impiously against the gods and if he has corrupted the youth of Athens. Socrates claims in his defense that he wants to live a private life, away from public affairs and teachings in Athens. He instead wants to focus on self-examination and learning truths from those in Athens through inquiry. Socrates argues that "a [man] who really fights for justice must lead a private, not a public, life if [he] is to survive for even a short time" (32a).

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1070 Words | 5 Pages

His personal defense is described in works two of his students: Xenophon and Plato. Both of them wrote papers called Apology, which is the Greek word for “defense”. In this essay I used Apology by Plato as the main resource, since it contents a more full account of the trial of Socrates and his words. Despite the fact that the philosopher attempted to defend himself and explain the reasons for saying and doing the things he did, it did not do any good for his justification. On the contrary, Socrates’ words seemed to make the jury harden their hearts and condemn him.

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Human Wasteland Humans have been identified as a main cause of climate change on earth. The damage humans contribute to the global warming process is irreversible. NASA.gov testifies that, “Most climate scientists agree that the main cause of the current global warming trend is human expansion of the greenhouse effect.” Climate change is ultimately resulted from humans burning raw materials such as coal, gas and oil. These materials create poisonous toxins that create a blanket like shield around the earth causing sea levels to rise, glaciers to melt, and smog like conditions.

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