Paper Topic:

Philosophy

In one of his earliest dialogues , Plato 's The Apology ' provides an account of Socrates ' defense against unfounded charges involving crimes against the people of Athens , which included making wrong right , lack of faith in Greek Gods , and corrupting the youth of Athens . Plato uses the case of Socrates to espouse his views on knowledge and virtue , as well as the value of life and wisdom . Socrates is certainly wise in that he admits he does not know true knowledge , though he feels that he must die with the same conviction with which

he lived , including adherence to the law even though it means his life

Crito ' takes place after Socrates is condemned to death . Crito visits Socrates in his cell and tries to convince the old philosopher to escape before the sentence is carried out . Crito , as a follower of Socrates , feels compelled to try to rescue him , as he fears they will be viewed with contempt for failing to help . Socrates tells Crito that he is not concerned with the values of popular opinion , rather only those of himself and his gods . Crito tries many arguments to try to dissuade Socrates from going through with his sentence , but Socrates has a response for each argument . When Crito reminds Socrates that the charges and the trial were unfair , Socrates explains how he must still follow through with the sentence , as he is obligated to follow the word of the law . By escaping , Socrates would be disregarding the law , and believes that by correcting a wrong with another wrong is nothing more than a complete contradiction of his convictions

Socrates asks Crito the value of society if people simply ignored the laws whenever they disagreed with them . Socrates did his best to persuade his jury of his innocence , but since they concluded that he was guilty , he feels no other alternative but to follow the sentence . This obligation to the law overrules everything else , and Socrates submission to the obviously unjust trial is nothing more than a statement of his respect for the law , his strong refusal to sacrifice his values , and a protest against the fallibility of those who administer the law . Through his death he becomes the embodiment of civic obligation , philosophical reasoning , and spiritual wisdom for all that follows

Philosophy - Socrates...

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