These charges are for “corrupting the minds of the young, and of believing in supernatural things of his own invention instead of gods recognised by the state.”1, However Socrates himself acknowledges a further set of charges against him, these are the “earliest charges”2 he refers to in the Apology, namely gossip in the Agora that has “tried to fill your minds with untrue accusations”3 against Socrates. These charges he holds as more dangerous because they stem from idle gossip and prejudice and are therefore unanswerable. Despite this, Socrates does his utmost to address all charges brought against him. In order to defend himself against these charges, Socrates calls on Meletus, his principal accuser, and interrogates him in the familiar form of the elenchus, or cross-examination. The first time the Socratic Method appears in the Apology is when Socrates tells the jury of his ‘divine mission’ when he systematically questions various levels of society such as Politicians, Poets and Craftsmen.
Euthyphro – Plato In Euthyphro, there was dialogue between Socrates and Euthyphro about the meaning of piety. Socrates has a particular interest in the subject of piety due to his recent charge of impiety. Socrates is about to be tried before Athenian court to determine whether he is guilty or innocent of the charges against him. The charges are for corrupting the youth, inventing new charges, and not believing in the old ones. He does not feel that the people understand the real meaning of piety and impiety.
Kiah Quinn Nathan Poage Philosophy 1301 July 17, 2015 What are the charges against Socrates as recorded in the Apology? Is he guilty of them? Why or why not? In Plato’s Apology, charges are being held against Socrates during his trial. The two main charges against Socrates are corrupting the young and also not having the proper religious beliefs.
Plato’s Euthyphro takes place in the Hall of the King which is the office for crimes against religion. Socrates is being prosecuted for corrupting youth (an impious act). Euthyphro has come to prosecute his own father for murdering a murderer. His father tied up the murderer in a well and forgot about him. The murderer died.
First, when Euthyphro defines piety as “doing as I am doing”, Euthyphro is meaning that holiness is prosecuting religious offenders. Euthyphro feels that in prosecuting his father that he is following the example of the gods, and particularly Zeus, the most just if all gods. Socrates seems to find the first definition unsatisfying, he points out that the gods often quarrel, so what is agreeable to one might not be agreeable to all. Socrates then asks Euthyphro to again define piety. The second argument, Socrates has is that piety and impiety are opposites, and that the gods are always in a state of discord.
One question that will always remain is did Socrates exist or was he a tool used by Plato and other philosophers to create dialog and controversy. His physical description, “impervious to the effects of cold and alcohol” with eyes able to see ahead and to the side like a crab, is unrealistic and could represent the characteristics of a god (Nails, 2010). Was Socrates the Athenian god of philosophy? His willingness to be put to death for the crime of irreverence to the gods of Athens seems to follow the theme used by Jesus, being put to death for trying to change the way one is to think about god or gods. School of Thought Socrates’ school of thought is idealistic; for a man to be happy he must truly know himself (Moore, 2012).
The Definitions of Piety Socrates meets with Euthyphro near the king-archon's court. Socrates explains that he is under indictment because he does not believe in the gods in whom the city does believe in and Euthyphro is present because he has come to persecute his own father for unintentionally killing a murderer. Socrates then flatter Euthyphro about his knowledge on holiness/piety. Out of curiosity Socrates questions Euthyphro about holiness. This leading into the definitions of piety.
However, Socrates is unable to find the meaning because the definition of piety changes. Piety is impossible to define for at least three reasons: the definition of piety can have more than one meaning, the structure of the conversation between Euthyphro and Socrates is dynamic, and their knowledge of piety also keeps changing. The definition of the word piety can mean more than one thing. During the conversation, Euthyphro keeps changing the definition of piety. First, he states, “In that case it’s what’s lovable to the gods that’s pious, and what’s not lovable to them that’s impious” (13).
Much of what Socrates uses to defend himself proves otherwise; this is proven in the story of the Oracle from Delphi. What does Socrates think of the gods? Socrates seems to contradict himself on several occasions on this issue. As Socrates defends his charge of atheism proposed by his accusers, he is able to prove to one of his accusers, Meletus, that he believes in the gods. In this essay I will prove that Socrates is in fact not a religious person, but he has had to act religious all his life as so he wouldn’t ever be accused for something such as this and uses this act to completely disprove the accusations made against him.
In consideration of this, Brutus appears increasingly benighted as he attempts to exonerate himself of guilt during the time preceding Caesar’s death. Brutus’ ignorance would lead us to believe that ambition is a capital crime. All through this play, the villainous act of murder is portrayed as mercy killing, while Caesar is sacrificed for the sake of his aspiration to control Rome. In conclusion, the