SOCRATES "AND SO I GO ABOUT THE WORLD..."

             Socrates differed from previous Greek philosophers in being concerned not with the external world but with the inner world of man and his nature.  Believing that the most precious thing about man is his psyche, or soul, Socrates went about Athens trying to persuade others of its care and value. It was unworthy of them, he insisted, to devote themselves to pursuing wealth and glory and to neglect what really mattered most.  

             The public confused Socrates with other kinds of critics, itinerant teachers circulating at Athens at this time called Sophists. Although at first highly respected, these "experts " or "wise men" gradually lost their good name as a result of their increasingly severe attacks on the established system of law, ethics, and religion.

             Hostility toward Socrates was aggravated as the result of the disastrous social and political events surrounding the Peloponnesian War and its aftermath. Eventually, he was arrested and brought to trial for impiety and corruption of youth. Although Socrates might have gotten off with a fine or by apologizing, he used the opportunity of his trial to speak instead about his "philosopher's mission to search into myself and others."

             The person who immortalized the name of Socrates was his young pupil Plato, whose works were all written in the form of dialogues and featured Socrates (with whom he had been associated for over ten years) as the main speaker. Of these, four dialogues-the Euthyphro, the Apology, the Crito, and the Phaedo-form a unit, and are devoted to describing Socrates's thought, trial, and death.

             After some good-natured banter, Socrates's discussion with Euthyphro turns to the question of the nature of piety. To Euthyphro's first definition-that piety is "prosecuting a wrongdoer"-Socrates remarks that although this may be an example of piety, it is not a definition of it. Euthyphro's second definition of piety-that it is "what is pleasing to the gods"-also proves unsatisfactory because, as Socrates reminds him, the same things please some gods and displease others. To Euthyphro's rejoinder here that the gods surely do not disagree with each other on the point that the guilty should be punished, Socrates replies that of course no one would dispute that. But what is disputed at such occasions is whether the person in question is guilty. But, as Socrates himself recognizes, even if Euthyphro could prove that all the gods agree that what his father did was wrong and that what he, Euthyphro, is doing is right or pious, this still would not tell us what pity in general is-unless we could generalize here and say that "Piety is what all the gods love." Euthyphro accepts this as his new definition. The question that now emerges, however, is this: "Is what is pious loved by the gods because it is pious; or is it pious because it was loved by them?" When Euthyphro replies that the gods love a thing because it is pious (and not the other way around), Socrates replies in surprise: "If that is so, then what is it about such things which make the gods love them? Aren't we back at the beginning, wondering what is piety and saying, as you did then, that it is what is pleasing to the gods!" Despite Socrates's plea that he try again, Euthyphro declines, saying he has an urgent engagement and must be off. The dialogue shows us how people's action are often based on ignorance, and these actions can have serious, even tragic, consequences.

             Socrates begins his defense against the charges of "corrupting the minds of the young and not worshipping the gods the state worships" by saying that he wants to deal first with his earliest accusers, those not in court now but who nevertheless have been spreading false rumors about him for many years. These rumors accuse him of speculating about the earth and the stars in the tradition of his predecessors, and assert that he is, like them, no doubt, an atheist..Socrates argues that these accusations are simply false; that he has never had any interest in these matters. But if he has not been spending his time doing that, what is it that he does? In answer to this question he relates the story of his friend's visit to the Oracle; the Oracle's pronouncement that Socrates is the wisest man in the world; what he did to determine the meaning of the pronouncement; and how this aroused hostility against him. These investigations, he tells them, led to the discovery that the Oracle was indeed right: he is the wisest of them all, for unlike everyone else, he knows that he knows nothing, whereas they are equally ignorant but do not know it. Sensing that the jury might think he has failed to recognize the seriousness of his position, he assures them he is fully aware of the implications of the charges. It is simply that having faced death before he is not afraid to die now; nor is he about to give up the one thing that is more precious to him than life itself: the pursuit of wisdom. If he has corrupted anyone as a result of this pursuit, let that person (or his kin) rise and say so. The jury votes and finds him guilty. Condemned to die, his last request is that they "do to my sons as I have done to you."

             Socrates is now in prison awaiting execution. Crito, a wealthy Athenian and Socrates's oldest friend, has come to plead that he escape. Socrates, while appreciating Crito's warm feelings, wants to consider the matter only on its merits. Crito urges Socrates to consider all the bad consequences that would result from his staying, but Socrates wants to consider only what his duty is, regardless of the consequences. The question we should always ask, he tells Crito, is whether we are acting rightly or wrongly, risking doing something wrong or not, not forgetting that it is never right to do a wrong, or to return evil for evil. He is not, of course, guilty, but nevertheless when a person is legally but wrongly convicted of an offense he has not committed, the wrong is inflicted not by the law but by those who have misused the law. The prisonbreaker, however, in doing what he does, challenges the whole fabric of law. Besides if he did not like living in Athens he was free to go; by staying he had entered into a pact that he is not now at liberty to break at his pleasure. en Crito is at a loss to reply, Socrates says to him: "Then, Crito, let us follow this course, since God points the way."

             The Phaedo's two main themes are the death of Socrates and the question of the mortality of the soul. The scene is Socrates's cell on the day set by the Athenia court for his death. The friends who have come to hid farewell to Socrates are surprised to find him calm and cheerful at this hour. In reply Socrates explains why the philosopher does not fear death (living, as he does, constantly with it). Several arguments for the soul's immortality are examined, and through the medium of myth an attempt is made to explore the nature of the soul's destination. The dialogue ends with a detailed and moving account of Socrates's last moments and death.