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ASSIGNMENT INSTRUCTIONS:
Question:
Based on Plato’s dialogue, Apology, assess the charge leveled against Socrates of corrupting the youth of Athens. (a) Do you think Socrates corrupted the youth of Athens? If so, why? If not, why not? (b) Summarize and critically evaluate Socrates’ defense on this particular accusation – was his defense convincing to you or not? Why or why not?
Answer:
Hello all,
On Socrates’s charges of corrupting the youth of Athens, I don’t think he corrupted the youth. I can see, however where the judges might think he was corrupting the youth. When he had heard that he was the wisest man in the world from the oracle, he felt the need to challenge that, as he didn’t believe himself to be the wisest man in the world. In doing so, he began to question poets, politicians, and craftsmen. He figured that by questioning people of all different classes and positions he’d be able to find somebody who was wiser than he was, however in his mind, with every examination, he failed. This led the youth of Athens to begin to emulate and imitate him, by performing their own examinations on others. This could be the “corruption” to which the Athenian judges were referring. Another “corruption they posited was that Socrates was an Atheist and taught his followers that there were no gods and that he taught that the sun was made of stone, and the moon was made of earth. Socrates defended here, stating that these were the theories of a different philosopher.
Going more into his defense, he began to examine one of the judges on the crime of corrupting the youth through his examination method. He consistently poked holes in the accused charge, showing that he was indeed, not an atheist, as well as stating that if he was corrupting the youth, he should have been taken aside and told he was doing so. He also mentioned that at his age, he should be able to tell the difference between someone attempting to help or hurt him. I can say his argument convinced me that he was not attempting to intentionally corrupt the youth of Athens, although he went about it rather arrogantly in my view. – Bill
HOW TO WORK ON THIS ASSIGNMENT (EXAMPLE ESSAY / DRAFT)
Overall, the charge of corrupting the youth of Athens against Socrates seems to be a result of misinterpretation and misrepresentation of his teachings and methods. Socrates was not intentionally corrupting the youth, but rather engaging in critical thinking and questioning the established norms and beliefs of the time. He did not have a set doctrine or ideology, but instead encouraged his students to think for themselves and question everything.
As for the specific accusations of atheism and promoting false theories about the sun and moon, Socrates made it clear that he was not the originator of these ideas and was merely discussing them as part of his philosophical inquiry. He did not claim to have all the answers and instead emphasized the importance of questioning and examining different ideas.
In his defense against the charge of corrupting the youth, Socrates used his characteristic method of questioning to expose the flaws in the accusations against him. He argued that if he was truly corrupting the youth, he should have been informed of this and given a chance to correct his behavior. He also pointed out that he was not charging for his teaching, and therefore did not have any financial motive for corrupting the youth.
In my opinion, Socrates’ defense was convincing in showing that he was not intentionally corrupting the youth of Athens. However, his arrogance and his approach of questioning everyone and everything could be seen as a form of intellectual elitism, which may have contributed to the perception of corruption. Overall, the charge against Socrates of corrupting the youth of Athens seems to be unfounded, and his defense effectively countered the accusations against him.
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