Socrates's loyalty to athens

866 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Athens Political Life

In “Crito,” Socrates’s loyalty to Athens is the determining principle that leads him to face the jury’s sentencing instead of taking the chance to escape from execution. But why is Socrates loyal to what he believes to be a corrupt society? While in his prison cell, Socrates’s loyalty to Athens is tested by his good friend, Crito. Crito puts forth the effort to provide Socrates with an argument as to why he should escape his death. Socrates makes a counter argument as to why he should stay and abide by his sentencing. Socrates poorly argues that he should abide by the sentencing of the Athenian jury because of his distaste for injustice, his happiness with Athens, and an agreement made at the voting age with the Law.
Socrates claims that just acts contribute to the health of the soul, while unjust acts contribute to the corruption of the soul (Plato 50). Injustice should never be committed since a life with a corrupted soul is not worth living (Plato 50). Therefore, you should never act with injustice, not even for revenge (Plato 52). Ethics should be obtained at all times. Once this is proven with Crito, Socrates brings attention to the Laws and Commonwealth of Athens. The Laws put forth arguments for the assertion that Socrates would be committing an injustice if he were to escape his sentencing. The first argument states that a citizen has an obligation to his or her state; this obligation should be stronger than that of a child’s obligation to his or her parent. Athens acts as a parent to its citizens by nurturing and educating them. Since the city of Athens has given Socrates many benefits, he feels as though he has an obligation to his city. Socrates does not want to reap the benefits, without providing his loyalty to Athen...

... middle of paper ...

...isleading and confusing. There is also a problem with his argument involving the agreement. If one agrees go the statement of the social contract as told by Socrates, there’s still room to question the other side of the contract. Along with citizens having obligations to the law, the law also has obligations to the citizens. The agreement is broken if the obligations are not met by the law. And if the agreement is broken by one side, isn’t the other side then free from its obligations to sustain its side of the agreement? Consequently innocent Socrates is free to escape an injustice, if that’s his choice to. It’s as if Socrates didn’t take into consideration the other side of the agreement; his loyalty to Athens blinded the other side. His loyalty to his city and the jury is to be admired; however, his arguments are not well put together, and rather hard to accept.

Show More
Related

  • Compare And Contrast Plato's Crito

    1301 Words  | 3 Pages

    In life, people are taught many different ways to do things. Based on their learning, they form diverse perspectives and make knowledgeable decisions with the information given at the time. Some of the decisions can be influenced by values, morals, beliefs, religion, experiences, families and the world in which one lives. All of these factors can support and influence an individual’s principles. In Plato’s Crito, a dialogue is captured between Crito and Socrates about his escape from prison. In his writings, Crito discusses his reasons and thoughts why Socrates should escape his fate. On the flip side, Socrates provides just as many reasons he should stay in prison even though it was unjust.

    Read More

  • Comparison Between Crito And Apology by Plato

    1631 Words  | 4 Pages

    For these two articles that we read in Crito and Apology by Plato, we could know Socrates is an enduring person with imagination, because he presents us with a mass of contradictions: Most eloquent men, yet he never wrote a word; ugliest yet most profoundly attractive; ignorant yet wise; wrongfully convicted, yet unwilling to avoid his unjust execution. Behind these conundrums is a contradiction less often explored: Socrates is at once the most Athenian, most local, citizenly, and patriotic of philosophers; and yet the most self-regarding of Athenians. Exploring that contradiction, between Socrates the loyal Athenian citizen and Socrates the philosophical critic of Athenian society, will help to position Plato's Socrates in an Athenian legal and historical context; it allows us to reunite Socrates the literary character and Athens the democratic city that tried and executed him. Moreover, those help us to understand Plato¡¦s presentation of the strange legal and ethical drama.

    Read More

  • Plato Republic Democracy

    1270 Words  | 3 Pages

    Truth be told there is no real justice in Socrates? ?just city?. Servitude of those within his city is crucial to its function. His citizens are, in every aspect, slaves to the functionality of a city that is not truly their own. True justice can not be achieved through slavery and servitude, that which appears to be justice (and all for the sake of appearances) is all that is achieved. Within Socrates? city there is no room for identity, individuality, equality, or freedom, which are the foundations justice was built upon. These foundations are upheld within a proper democracy. In fact, the closest one can experience justice, on a political level, is through democracy.

    Read More

  • The Trail Of Socrates And The Apology Of Plato

    1011 Words  | 3 Pages

    ...uments are completely different. Crito wants Socrates to escape because he doesn’t deserve to die because he did nothing wrong. Socrates argues back that if he escapes he will be breaking the law. Which is the thing that he is trying to uphold. Socrates believes that escaping will go against all the things he has been arguing and teaching the youth.

    Read More

  • Socrates' Last Error

    3188 Words  | 7 Pages

    Contrary to this widely accepted myth, I will try to demonstrate that Socrates' argument was erroneous, which made his decision less rational. In fact, had he decided to escape, his behavior would not have represented an unjust act. Although his argumentation and dialogue with Crito seem more like a moral sermon, his ...

    Read More

  • Compare And Contrast Sophocles Antigone And Crito

    1102 Words  | 3 Pages

    He states that if he were to escape he would not be living honorably which he describes in Plato 's “Apology” as living a unexamined life and to him he would much rather die. Socrates states, “one must not even do wrong when one is wronged, which most people regard as the natural course” (Plato, 268). Socrates even though his sentence maybe biased and not morally right still believes that he must follow what he is condemned to. Through this he implies that even if we are cheated of fairness we must still do what is honorable and not fight it. He explains that the majority of people in his case would justify it to escape because they were sentenced for something that is completely moral. I disagree with Socrates in that if I was in his place, I would gain freedom and face my enemies for they wronged

    Read More

  • Socrates and Crito: Teaching Morals and Honor

    1342 Words  | 3 Pages

    ...dditionally, Socrates believed that escaping would show that the people who tried him and found him guilty that they had in fact done the right thing. This would further their assumptions that he was corrupting the minds of people by running away and disobeying the law. If he had escaped, he may have been invalidated and may not be as important historically as he is today. Whether or not it made an impact on Athens or the rest of the world, Socrates did what he believed was right for himself and for the people. I believe that Socrates did what was honorable at the time. His honor and incite in to the way that people should live has been carried on through history is proof that people still value his ideas and reasoning.

    Read More

  • Socrates´ Death

    1792 Words  | 4 Pages

    In 399 BC, Socrates, the great philosopher in ancient Greece, was put to death under the hands of his Athenian fellow-citizens to whom he had a strong attachment, after a final vote with over two-thirds of jurymen against him. We cannot experience the situation where Socrates gave his final argument in the court of law. From Plato’s Apology, we admire Socrates’ brilliant rhetoric and rigorous logic, while at the same time feel pity for him and indignant with those ruthless jurymen. However, the question of what exactly caused his death and why was Socrates, such a remarkable thinker sentenced to death in the very society that valued democracy the most is not easy and straightforward to answer. There are multiple elements involved that finally caused this tragedy in which “a person of high moral principle is confronted step by step with a situation from which there is no escape” (38). First of all, the moral principle and belief in divinity held by Socrates are inconsistent with those of the Athenian society, implying the very crimes charged upon Socrates were not completely groundless. Secondly, the imperfect juridical system of Athens played a role in causing this tragedy. What’s more, Socrates himself, could have offered better defense in the court, also had a hand in his own death by his stubbornness regarding to his own interpretation of wisdom and piety. His rebuttal, though brilliant and insightful, was not persuasive enough to move the fellow-citizens for his wrong approach and sophistry in his cross-examination on Meletus.

    Read More

  • Socrates Was NOT Guilty

    1660 Words  | 4 Pages

    Socrates was not guilty as charged; he had done nothing wrong, as seen in the Apology. Not even a priest could tell Socrates what he had done wrong religiously, Euthyphro wasn’t even able to give Socrates a precise definition of piety. It is then questioned by Crito why Socrates would remain to face a penalty for a crime he did not commit. In the Crito, it is explained why, although innocent, Socrates must accept the penalties his peers have set upon him. It is his peers that will interpret and enforce the laws, not the law which will enforce it. Even if the enforcers don’t deserve attention and respect because they have no real knowledge to the situation, Socrates had put himself under their judgment by going to the trial. Therefore, Socrates must respect the decisions made by the masses because the decisions are made to represent the laws, which demand each citizen’s respect.

    Read More

  • Plato's Apology: The Argument For Corrupting The Youth Of Plato

    785 Words  | 2 Pages

    When asked if there’s anyone in the world who would knowingly choose to be harmed, Meletus replies with “Of course not.”, yet he still insists that Socrates intentionally corrupts the youth (p. 56). Socrates knows that those who are wicked will not only cause harm to strangers, but also will cause harm to those who are close to them (p. 56). Socrates is close to those he teaches and does not want to bring harm to himself (p. 56). Therefore, Socrates would never intentionally corrupt the youth (p.56). Socrates goes on to argue that even if he was unwillingly corrupting the youth of Athens, Meletus’ charges would still hold no real value as it would be an involuntary misdemeanor (p. 56).When somebody unknowingly commits a crime they aren’t summoned to court, they are taken aside and made to see the error of their ways (p. 56). So why was Socrates dragged to court? If someone had tried to enlighten Socrates, and had helped him to see that what he was doing was wrong, then he would have stopped doing that which was unintentional (p. 56). Socrates concludes this part of his argument by stating that no one had tried to enlighten him and by once again questioning why he was brought to court, when court is intended for people who need to be punished, not for people who need to be enlightened (p.

    Read More

  • Similarities Between Martin Luther King Jr And Socrates

    698 Words  | 2 Pages

    Socrates refuses to disobey the law. He believes in the correctness of the cities laws. He believes it is never right to act unjustly. He thinks that if you do not agree with the laws of the area that you are living at, then to leave and go somewhere else. He argues that the government could be seen as “his parents, also those who brought him up,” (Crito, 51e), since he has lived there his entire life and when you live somewhere for so long you should “persuade us or to do what we say,” (Crito, 52a) or leave. Socrates tells Crito that

    Read More

  • Socrates Argument in the Crito

    1099 Words  | 3 Pages

    Socrates reaches a conclusion that defies a common-sense understanding of justice. Nothing about his death sentence “seems” just, but after further consideration, we find that his escape would be as fruitless as his death, and that in some sense, Socrates owes his obedience to whatever orders Athens gives him since he has benefited from his citizenship.

    Read More

  • Thrasymachus Definition Of Justice Essay

    523 Words  | 2 Pages

    Socrates questions Thrasymachus on why he adds the detail of the stronger to his definition of justice. Socrates than asks, if it is just for everyone to follow the laws that the ruler has made, if the ruler has made unjust laws. His argument is that people, even rulers make mistakes. This meaning that if a ruler makes mistakes on the law does that still make it just. It is a very conflicting argument to think about, if the rules are not just then why should they be followed but the rules were also put in place by someone who is supposed to know the difference between just and unjust and choose correctly. This relates to what Socrates says during his trial portrayed in the Apology. Socrates claims

    Read More

  • Socrates' Pursuit of Wisdom

    1155 Words  | 3 Pages

    ...ns. Why would he do this if he did not see the laws of Athens as just? In order to fulfill the agreement he has made with Athenian law, Socrates must accept the punishment he is given, though he feels that his being punished is Athens wronging him. It would be wrong, by his view, to escape from prison, though he would not be pursued, because he would be breaking his agreement to obey Athenian law. Since he and Crito previously agreed that one must never do wrong, he simply must stay in jail until his death. This is merely one example of the way in which Socrates uses a method of logical dialogue in order to make his point. He appears to be unmatched in his skills of deduction and consistently demonstrates his love of knowledge and truth. Socrates exemplifies all that is philosophy, both as a student and a teacher, because of his constant, active pursuit of wisdom.

    Read More

  • The Unexamined Life Is Not Worth Living

    1037 Words  | 3 Pages

    When Socrates was brought to trial for the corruption of the city’s youth he knew he had done nothing wrong. He had lived his life as it should be lead, and did what he ne...

    Read More

More about Socrates's loyalty to athens

Open Document