Socrates faced a life ending death penalty, and although he had a well-prepared opportunity to escape and save himself, he chose to die. From his point of view, a mature citizen must keep a contract with the state where he lives. This contract contains duties for both sides. The state has to take care for his citizen whereas the citizen has not only to obey and protect the rules that the state determines but also acknowledge them – which in the situation of a death penalty means to accept this ruling without reservation no matter if it is right or wrong.
Socrates argues it is better to suffer an unlawful act than to commit a wrong. Would he escape wouldn't he be any better than those who condemned him to death even if this judgment has been wrong. With an escape he would lose his credibility and could not speak about virtue again. His family and friends would be negatively affected. Beyond that he would justify the death penalty trough wrongful behavior and legalize it retrospectively. In other words: One cannot fight one wrong with another. Doing this would create a vicious circle of human suffering which never ends.
The virulent question now is if one should break the law because of a wrongful judgment – considering that the law is made by humans and humans can err? Or should we carry our ideals to the last extremes?.
Not only is Socrates' decision a brave one, it is also one which seems to be made without any personal involvement, as if Socrates himself would not be affected by it. His pure ratio has lead his argumentation, following in the final analysis the antique understanding of the almighty authority of law. The law is the objective leader which dictates one's behavior. Not decisive is his personal relation to the men who found the ruling; their reasoning becomes objective law as soon as it has the format of a judgment; for the better or the worse this ruling has to be obeyed.
Throughout his endeavors Socrates found his virtue. ... "But Socrates, what is your occupation? ... Anyone who says that seems to be right, and I will try to show what has caused this reputation and slander. ... Already, as Socrates believes, he has a divine right for philosophy and it is his duty and moral responsibility now to possess that wisdom. ... Yet Socrates says he is not. ...
Socrates is known to be one of the greatest philosophers of all time. ... Socrates was born in 469 BC in Athens. ... Socrates realized that the Oracle was right because men that thought they were wise were not wise at all but Socrates knew he was not wise which made him the only person aware of his ignorance. ... Socrates showed bold resistance to authority and also wished to die because he actually believed that the right time had come for him to die. ... To me Socrates emphasized on true knowledge and wisdom. ...
Using reason, Socrates could infer truths and undermine any statement. This method of questioning searched for definitions of "universal truths" and turned philosophy from the study of how actions are viewed by the majority into how our mind's preconceived notions affect our views on right and wrong. ... His Life Socrates was born in 470 B.C., in Athens, Greece. ... "And Xanthippe," said Socrates, "is the mother of my children. ... Socrates had an interesting perspective on his unmanageable wife. ...
So finally he realized that the Oracle must be right after all, and that he was the wisest man in Athens because he alone was prepared to admit his own ignorance rather than pretend to know something he did not know. Socrates felt strongly about his beliefs, that he lived by them and also died for his philosophical beliefs. ... When Socrates was faced with the choice to live, and no longer teach philosophy or to die, he chose death. He would rather die than stop doing what he loved and what he thought he had to do for the world. ... They were attacking Socrates for his exercising of the peopl...
This paper will argue and prove that Socrates had no fear of death. ... (Kolak 16) Socrates believed that this oracle showed him the right and wrong decisions to make before making them, and he did not receive any warning about attending his trial or proceeding as he did: But the oracle made no sign of opposition, either as I was leaving my house and going out in the morning, or when I was going up into this court, or while I was speaking, at anything which I was going to say but now in nothing I either said or did touching this matter has the oracle opposed me. ... (Kolak 10) Hi...
Right? ... It is with knowledge that one will be lead in the right direction. ... While speaking to Meletus, Socrates states "A man who is good for anything should not calculate the chance of living or dying. ... By not "calculating living or dying," you are taking away the emotional side of ones thoughts. ... It is what he bases his "good life" on because they are morally and intellectually right. ...
Philosophical Inquiry Socrates took his life while in jail for a crime that he did not commit because he felt it was the right thing to do. ... Socrates refused to be let go, stating that he would not break this law, because if he broke this law then he would appear to an enemy of all laws, and he would rather die than to break the law. So against his friends and disciples pleas Socrates drank up his poisonous hemlock, and died. ... So he in turn stated that he would rather die, than have to live with an unhealthy psyche. ... There's a saying, that two wrongs don...
However, Socrates is not going to change his teaching method because he strongly believed in the Athenian society law is always right. ... It is not weird when you take a flashback toward the book because Socrates is not hesitating to drink the poison because I think this is the only way he can try to prove that he is right instead of wrong. For example, in the painting before he was reaching the poison, his right arm is so relaxed and calm and he was looking away from the poison. ... In addition, if we read from the book, we could see that Socrates was weird and crazy, but if he chooses to di...
Socrates Philosophy is a vast field. ... He believed that no person is willingly bad; therefore, those who know what's right will act rightly. On the last day of his life, Socrates made a powerful statement when he claimed that philosophy was merely practice for getting used to death and dying. ... He was condemned to die, although there was a small majority to do so. ... Socrates' friends planned his escape from prison, but he preferred to comply with the law and die for his cause. ...
