Socrates and the Republic
The Republic represents Socrates' true apology, as this is the only work in which he has effectively handled the subject he was coerced into facing, following the allegations of Athens against him; the subject is his relationship with the political realm (Bloom, ).
The great philosopher of Athens was blamed for being unjust in his actions -- firstly, by disbelieving in the people's gods, and secondly, for corrupting Athens' youngsters. The above charges aren't merely in relation to the citizen Socrates, who is coincidentally a philosopher; rather, their intention was condemning philosophy itself, in favor of both the citizens and the politicians of Athens. From Athens' perspective, there appears to be an element in Socrates' thinking and mode of life that raises doubts regarding the gods of Athens, who were deemed as the guardians of the city's laws; this, therefore, renders the philosopher a bad resident, or, to be more precise, not a citizen at all. The existence of such an individual within the city's walls and the friendship he has developed with the city's most promising youth renders Socrates a revolutionary and a traitor (Bloom, page307).
The philosopher is labeled 'unjust' not merely for violating the laws of the city, but also for, evidently, denying the elemental beliefs that enable the functioning of the civil society (Bloom, page307).
Philosophy in Civil Society
For philosophy to be acknowledged by the common people, a justification was needed. During the trial of Socrates, the concept of philosophy was fresh in cities; the field could very conveniently be trounced. Philosophers would need to defend themselves in front of citizens, or their entry into the city could be deterred in as forceful a manner as possible. The trial of Socrates represented a catastrophe for philosophy; the discipline's life was in peril. Also, counter to what the world is disposed to believing today, it isn't merely evident that the arena of philosophy...
Finally, Socrates comes to the idea of knowledge as true judgment accompanied by "an account," meaning evidence or reason. In this context, knowledge would mean not only believing something true, but also having a reasonable justification for that belief; in other words, this definition proposes that knowledge means knowing a true thing and knowing why that thing is true. However, even here Socrates has a problem with the definition,
Plato's Apology Discuss the main points of Plato's the Apology The Apology is based upon series of speeches that were made by Socrates in 39 BC. He was standing trial for corrupting the youth of Athens by not believing in the gods of the city. This is because he would often question various ideas in order to have a greater sense of understand and enlightenment. As a result, there were several main
This recurrent theme is no accident: most cultures have, as a basis for their creation mythos, a utopian view of either the pre-human world or the post-human world. Sociological, this is a functionalist approach that serves to validate what it means to be a good citizen in society and move towards all citizens being good, and therefore a utopian culture arises. The word "utopia" is derived from the combination
A philosopher makes "logoi," discusses, and cross examines about virtue, is short of wisdom, and is aware of it. However, in as much as one is a philosopher, one desires wisdom and searches for it. In historical Greek, this notion is virtually a tautology, prompting Socrates to hold that the wise no longer philosophize. Socrates believes that philosophy is gathering knowledge; however, going by valid evidence, philosophy is the
This is very true because even in modern times students who desire to attain good grades will endeavor for that, but a student who has no desire will only go to school to pass time. This analogy can also be vice versa, a petty man can become a gentleman and a gentleman can also become a petty man Austin, Page 106. The main reason they do not change places is
It is very dark in the cave, and everything, including the face of the person next to them, is in deep shadows. It is never mentioned whether the people are happy or sad, or whether they speak to each other. It is assumed that they speak at least enough to put names to the shadows they see on the far wall. According to some, the chains that bind the
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