The Trial and Death of Socrates, translated by Benjamin Jowett, is a series of dialogues written by Plato that tell of the court hearing, indictments, and fate of one of the most renowned philosophers: Socrates. Although he is now recognized and praised as the founding figure of Western philosophy and an intellectual genius, he was tried and condemned to death for his practices. Socrates was best known for his unkempt appearance, moral integrity, probing questions, frugal lifestyle, and his use of questions and dialogue in the pursuit of wisdom. It is from this questioning, which we now know as the Socratic Method, mixed with his desire to investigate the validity of a prophecy given by the Oracle of Delphi that caused him his misfortune.
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Finding an alternative punishment to the death penalty was hard as Socrates refused any option he was given, whether it be banishment or a fine along with the promise to no longer profess his philosophy; there was always something (Plato, 37-38). Banishment would have just sent him wandering from town to town, earning resentment and expulsion from each, just as he was in Athens, and he could not be fined as he was not a very materialistic person and would have only been able to muster up one-hundred drachmas. He also refused to stop professing his philosophy as it is only through this that he can do his duty to God and pursue goodness, and claims that the unexamined life it not worth …show more content…
This means that we can only have success and meaning in our life if we encompass the ability to know and understand ourselves. Ultimately, Socrates is condemned to death as he claims that without wisdom or self-knowledge, he believes he would be better off dead (Plato, 40). Socrates elaborates on his view of death stating that, “death is a state of nothingness and utter unconsciousness or, as men say, there is a change in migration of the soul from this world to another” (Plato 40). This translates to Socrates believing that death is the separation of a person’s physical body and their
Finding an alternative punishment to the death penalty was hard as Socrates refused any option he was given, whether it be banishment or a fine along with the promise to no longer profess his philosophy; there was always something (Plato, 37-38). Banishment would have just sent him wandering from town to town, earning resentment and expulsion from each, just as he was in Athens, and he could not be fined as he was not a very materialistic person and would have only been able to muster up one-hundred drachmas. He also refused to stop professing his philosophy as it is only through this that he can do his duty to God and pursue goodness, and claims that the unexamined life it not worth …show more content…
This means that we can only have success and meaning in our life if we encompass the ability to know and understand ourselves. Ultimately, Socrates is condemned to death as he claims that without wisdom or self-knowledge, he believes he would be better off dead (Plato, 40). Socrates elaborates on his view of death stating that, “death is a state of nothingness and utter unconsciousness or, as men say, there is a change in migration of the soul from this world to another” (Plato 40). This translates to Socrates believing that death is the separation of a person’s physical body and their