Plato Five Dialogues Apology Pdf

[Armonia Bunda]

TheApology is one of several dialogues written by Plato that describes the trial, imprisonment, and execution of Socrates by his fellow Athenians. Although Socrates is on trial in the Apology, the term apology is not to be taken as an admission of guilt or wrongdoing. Rather, Socrates not only defends himself, he turns the tables on his accusers by criticizing both them and the Athenians in general. His comparison of the people of Athens to a sluggish horse that he must sting into action, quoted below, has gone down in history as a famous analogy:

Thus, Socrates was a gadfly, goading the intellectually slothful citizens of Athens into questioning the established beliefs of the time. He wanted people to think rather than assume. Socrates was famous for questioning common assumptions and cherished beliefs that his fellow Athenians held about such matters as justice, courage, love, and knowledge. He was very adept at showing that people know far less than they actually suppose. In other words, he showed that people are often fooled by appearances.

Socrates demonstrates a similar attitude in dialogues such as Meno and Crito. His disdain for majority opinion, which is expressed more than once in these dialogues, reaffirms his unwillingness to blindly conform to conventional beliefs and values. Thus, to the very end of his life, he insists on reaching his own conclusions.

Myles Burnyeat and Bryan Magee on Plato

An interview with Myles Burnyeat (b. 1939), a scholar who has spent many years studying Socrates and Plato. The entire interview is worth watching, but the first segment is especially useful for its introduction to Socrates.

3a8082e126