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The Corruption Of Socrates In Plato's The Republic

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Socrates is known as one of the most eminent Greek philosophers, but history has also told that the man was primarily infuriating. Born in 471 B.C.E, Socrates followed the life of a traditional Greek citizen by working as a mason and a hoplite until he became a popular instructor of philosophy. The man was not fond of traditional religion, and began questioning concepts of life, such as justice, knowledge, and wisdom. This incessant questioning eventually led to his execution by the Athenian government in 399 B.C.E. Socrates gained many followers before his death, and the most renowned example is Plato. Much of what we know today about Socrates was originally recorded in 380 B.C.E. by Plato in his dialogue, The Republic. That same dialogue depicts Socrates in such detail that it is able to capture the reasoning for Socrates execution twenty years earlier. For centuries, Socrates has been viewed by the world as the founder of Western Philosophy. This title originates from his ingenious questioning of concepts that rule our daily lives. This questioning also placed him in a legal trial that later led to his execution by poison. Socrates was despised in Athens over many of his views, but his corruption of the young angered the populace the most. The youth of the polis began to question their knowledge, and the government knew that action had to be taken. After much deliberation, Socrates was sentenced to death by poison.
The manner in which Socrates corrupted the youth is depicted in The Republic through the his incessant …show more content…

Through examples of his questioning, empty statements, and overall corruption of knowledge, Plato’s depiction of Socrates informs the audience of why the founder of Western philosophy was executed by the Greek government. Years after Socrates’ death, he remains alive in numerous arts created by a variety of

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The first concept that I noticed shared by Russell and Socrates was the concept that one had to remove themselves before serious philosophical contemplation could take place. In Russell 's case, he refers to the "Self" and the "Not-Self". With Socrates, as seen in the Apology, confronting his accuser about the corruption of youth, his accuser is silent because he had not given the matter any thought. Socrates awareness of his own ignorance frees him from what Russell would refer to as "Self". I mention this because it serves as a common theme even as both philosophers differ in their messages.

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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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Introduction The Apology was written by Plato, and relates Socrates’ defense at his trial on charges of corrupting the youth and impiety. Socrates argues that he is innocent of both charges. Plato reports the contents of three speeches delivered by Socrates in his own protection in court which has been arranged over him by the Athenian democrats and has terminated in the death sentence to the great philosopher. The word "apology" in a literal translation means "justification". Plato's purpose when writing "Apology" was to acquit posthumously Socrates from false accusation.

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Assuming that nobody wants to become corrupted, it follows that no one would knowingly corrupt those who they associate with. And because Socrates associates primarily with the youth of Athens, he would never knowingly corrupt them. Socrates was an outstanding of the Greek civilization. He defended himself against allegations of impiety and corruption of Athens youth. On the contrary, he provided strong arguments for his own defense

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Making enemies and becoming the topic of conversation, the Athenians began to view Socrates as a threat to their beliefs and way of life and sought to end it. In order to end this, Socrates was accused of blasphemy (Mod1SlideC7). Socrates’s accusers took him to court and after Socrates did not play their game by asking to be sent into exile, and in the end, he was sentenced to death. After reading the textbook and Plato’s writing influenced by Socrates, I realized that in the period of his life Socrates was indeed truly a threat to the Athens society, because he looked for answers that no one else bothered to find which challenged their culture.

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