When you can admit your own short comings you open yourself to accept someone else’s knowledge on the subject you are unfamiliar with. If Meno had not admitted to this, he would have never became wiser on the subject and assume his thoughts on virtue were to correct ones. This is the lesson that would be a benefit to Anytus and Meletus. By being open to new thoughts and having an acceptance of not being all knowing would in turn benefit all of Athens, for they respect Anytus’s thoughts. Anytus shows his ignorance and unwillingness to accept Socrates’s teachings when Anytus tells Socrates that he has never even spoken to a Sophist or ever meeting one.
The Unexamined life is worth living What does it mean to live a good life? Famous Greek philosopher Socrates once said, "The unexamined life is not worth living.” (Plato 30). By saying this, Socrates was basically stating that in order to achieve the good life, one must examine life and question the unanswered thoroughly. Some people may agree with this idea while others may strongly disagree. After giving this question much thought, I have come to a conclusion as to what I believe the good life actually is.
Socrates was genuinely worried about why the young men were so disappointing. Socrates' young students had been a particular disappointment to him. If Socrates could figure out exactly how the fathers had failed to properly educate their sons, he could save the city and restore Athens to its former glory. Socrates’ interesting idea was that human excellence was really a kind of knowledge. Sophists were skilled in elaborate argumentation; were they would try and make the argument they were focusing on the stronger side, even if it was wrong or weaker.
After analyzing many different texts, it seems as if Socrates could be innocent and guilty at the same time. It’s difficult trying to figure out what Socrates really believed because there are many different things for people to read. I personally think that Socrates does not believe in the gods of Athens but does believe in a higher power. Because of the oracle, Socrates says, “I do not have the leisure to engage in public affairs to any extent, nor indeed to look after my own, but I live in great poverty because of my service to the god” (23b). The only thing I don’t agree with after reading this information is that he corrupted the youth.
The ancient text Crito by Plato is a staged dialogue between Socrates and Crito in which is attempting Crito offers numerous arguments to encourage Socrates escape imprisonment. Crito emphasizes that if Socrates does not escape, no one would believe that he had cooperatively faced execution. That the people of Athens would fault Crito for not helping Socrates, assuming that he values his money more than the life of his close friend. Crito argues that there are other states in which Socrates has allies that will keep him safe and continues to emphasis that he should not easily give in to his enemies. However, Socrates argues against Crito’s proposal to help using few arguments.
27d). There is a error in Meletus’ accusations because Socrates cannot both teach daimonia and be an atheist. The two notions are mutually
Philosophers have always been questioning the definition of piety. It is impossible to find the meaning of the word because it requires deep analysis in order to understand the structure of its definition. According to “Euthyphro” by Plato, one philosopher, Socrates, searches for that definition by becoming an intellectual, who thinks and asks question. He asks Euthyphro questions about piety, in order to find answers to prove he is not impious, during one of his trials. However, Socrates is unable to find the meaning because the definition of piety changes.
Essentially, Socrates stated that he did not possess wisdom, like sophists believe they possess, but only human wisdom, which implies the fact that he knew that he knew nothing at all. First of all in this excerpt, Socrates addressed a counter-argument to his self-proclaimed innocence, in which his fellow civilians questioned his occupation. It was common knowledge that Socrates spent most of his time around the marketplace discussing a plethora of concepts and questioning people on whichever topic he desired. Thus, the public believed that he was nothing more than a traveling sophist, trying to obtain money in exchange for his knowledge; such activities were not deemed completely reputable or acceptable in common Athenian society and were characteristic of sophists. He continued to refute this assertion by making a slightly sarcastic, presumptuous joke at the public’s expense, “Listen then...some of you will think I am jesting, but be sure that all I say is true.” This quote can be perceived as a stab at the ‘inferior argument’ strategy, for which sophists are famous.
But the Athenians rejected their offer by saying that they would not be much affected by their hostility but on the other hand their friendship would prove a sign of their weakness and they would be considered coward to allow such a small and insignificant island to not be ruled by them. The Melians questioned the justice of the Athenians by asking that how fair it is to treat a neutral nation equally with its colonies or rebels. But the Athenians refused to look at things from their point and argued that by conquering the Melians they would not only increase their size but also security. The second argument presented by the Melians was that in case of a war, the Spartans would come to their rescue as a return of favor done
Alma Askins Rowe Professor Nathan Poage Philosophy 1301 January 25, 2013 The Charges against Socrates Socrates is described as having neglected his own affairs, instead he was spending his time discussing virtue, justice, and piety wherever his fellow citizens congregated, seeking wisdom about right conduct so that he might guide the moral and intellectual improvement of Athens (Perel). Using a method now known as the Socratic dialogue, or dialectic, he drew forth knowledge from his students by pursuing a series of questions and examining the implications of their answers. Socrates had charges brought against him by a man named Meletus, who was a young man that Socrates did not know very well. These charges that were brought against him caused the indictment of Socrates. One of the charges in the affidavit written by Meletus against Socrates is that he is an evil doer "corrupting the youth" (Grube).