The Death Of Socrates Analysis

While visiting the Metropolitan Museum of Art, I was assigned to look at two very significant paintings, one which was Rembrandt van Rijn’s oil canvas of Aristotle with a Bust of Homer. The seconded painting was The Death of Socrates is also an oil canvas that was painted by Jacques-Louis David which depicts the closing moments of the life of Socrates.

The question, why Socrates was executed and if he deserved the charges put against him has been asked by historians for centuries. Socrates has a unique position in the history of philosophy; for one, he is one of if not the most influential philosopher. In his later life he is known to be the one that walked in the streets barefoot to spite shoemakers. He went about arguing and questioning people

Socrates was tried on two charges; one of which was for corrupting the youth and the other was impiety. More specifically, Socrates’ accusers cited two ungodly acts failing to acknowledge the gods that the city acknowledges and introducing new deities. Socrates' death was result of his asking philosophical questions. He was given two choices, to either renounce his beliefs or die by drinking a cup of poison. In the painting you see Socrates speaking while holding the cup in the air. In the back you see his wife only in the distance leaving the prison. Plato is at the foot of the bed with his head down while Crito is grasping his leg; they are the only two people who seem in control of

Even though it was very hard to understand it made me think about what Rembrandt really felt while painting this portrait. He made me ask questions such as why he gave Aristotle a melancholic look on his face. I like the way in which Rembrandt portrayed two very historically influential people, one being an Ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle and the other being Homer and epic poet of an earlier time. I really liked the rich and extravagant clothing Aristotle has on, it suits him as a person. The expression on Aristotle’s face shows a look of contemplation, it is possible that he is comparing his success to Homer’s or perhaps thinking about the worth of success. Aristotle’s contact with the bust of Homer shows the importance of Aristotle’s contemplation. Maybe Rembrandt’s main focus was to highlight Aristotle’s time of reflection in order to show his viewers the value and price that success can have on an individual. I truly liked the way in which Rembrandt portrayed this simple yet imaginative scene. The Death of Socrates painting was clear and straight to the point, meaning that you could see why a few people covered their faces and you knew why Socrates is reaching out to grab the cup of poison. It was different from Aristotle with a Bust of Homer because in that painting it really made me think about why Aristotle’s face