PHIL
111: Introduction to Philosophy
LARKIN:
Spring 2003
________________________________________
Plato,
Apology
A.
“Don’t
mind the manner of my speech, give whole attention to whether what I say is
just.”
B.
Socrates
is criticizing the emphasis on rhetoric in the democratic state. He contrasts the art of persuasion
(rhetoric) from the pursuit of truth (logic).
C.
Socrates
emphasizes substance over style.
A.
There
are “older false accusations” that Socrates is worried will bias the judges.
1.
“Speculates
about what is in the heavens and beneath the earth.” Socrates fears this reputation will cause people to be too ready
to accept that he is an atheist.
2.
“Makes
the worse argument appear the better”
Socrates fears this will bias the jury regarding the charge of
corrupting the youth.
B.
Socrates’
Basic Response: I do not do these things.
1.
Socrates
distinguishes himself from natural philosophers like Anaxagoras (what we would
today call scientists). Socrates is not
interested in figuring out what the material physical world is ultimately like
(metaphysics), he is rather interested in questions concerning the Good
Life—notions like justice, piety, virtue, knowledge, etc. (ethics and
epistemology). Here is where philosophy
begins to split from science insofar as the former but not the latter will
focus on normative rather than descriptive questions.
2.
Socrates
also wants to distance himself from the Sophists—people who went around taking
money to teach people rhetoric or the art of persuasion. Socrates claims to not have the kind of
knowledge that the Sophists profess to have and points out that he does not
take money to teach anyone anything.
C.
Hypothetical
Question: “What were you doing that got you this reputation though Socrates?”
D.
Socrates’
Reply: His Mission
1.
The
Delphic Oracle Pronounced that Socrates was the wisest among men.
2.
Socrates
did not believe this and so decided to challenge it by going around question
those who seemed to know more than he.
a.
Politicians:
Socrates questioned them about such things as justice and found that they did
not know any more than Socrates did.
But Socrates considered himself better off, since at least he knew that
he did not know anything.
b.
Poets:
Socrates questioned them about the meaning of their works and found that they
could not explain them (they must have been externally inspired/possessed to
produce the works that they really could not comprehend). Still the poets believed they knew a great
deal about things that they did not.
c.
Artisans: The artisans did know things that Socrates
did not know about their specific fields of expertise, but they too believed
that because they were experts in one area that there were therefore experts in
other areas as well
3.
Socrates
concludes that the oracle was right. He
is the wisest of all men—not because he has more knowledge than others but
because at least he knows that he does not know anything. Others are less wise because they claim to
know things that they do not know.
E.
The
Reason for the Reputation: Socrates made a great many powerful and influential
people angry by showing them up in public—demonstrating in front of crowds that
they did not really know what they claimed to know. These people would then say how awful Socrates was, and because
they did not want to reveal the real reason for their anger they repeated stock
charges against the philosophers/sophists.
A.
Corrupting
the Youth
1.
Ad
Hominem Attack on Meletus: Socrates argues that Meletus claims to be motivated
by an interest in the welfare of the youth of Athens yet he has clearly not
thought about the issue much. For he
believes the absurd conclusion that everyone in the city-state except for
Socrates improves the youth. This is
very odd considering that in all other affairs it is not the many but the few
who have the expertise to improve things.
2.
Virtue
is Knowledge Argument: The general Socratic dictum that virtue is knowledge
claims that no one ever does wrong intentionally. Whenever anyone does what is in fact the wrong thing, it is never
because they believed it was wrong but because they mistakenly believed it was
the right thing to do. What is thus
required to insure that people act in accordance with virtue is an education
(knowledge) sufficient to avoid forming false beliefs about what is
right/wrong. From this basic
perspective, Socrates argues as follows that he should not be punished for
corrupting the youth:
P1: To corrupt someone
voluntarily is to invite harm to oneself.
P2: No one (in her right, rational mind) would invite harm to
oneself.
C1: So I (Socrates) am not corrupting the youth voluntarily.
C2: So either I am corrupting the youth involuntarily or not at all.
P3: If I am corrupting the youth involuntarily, then I should not be
punished for corrupting the youth.
P4: If I am not corrupting the youth at all, then I should not be
punished for corrupting the youth.
C3: So I should not be punished for corrupting the youth.
3.
No
Evidence of Harm Defense
P1: If I had
really corrupted anyone, then I would have caused them harm.
P2: If I had
caused some people harm, either they or their relatives would be here to speak
against me.
P3: But no one
has spoken against me and claimed that I have harmed either them or their
relative.
C: So I must
not have corrupted anyone.
B.
Impiety
(Atheism): Socrates does not come right
out and say that he does in fact believe in the official gods of the
State. Instead he argues that Meletus
has contradicted himself as follows:
P1: Meletus is committed to
the claim that I believe in divine things.
P2: If I believe in divine things, then I believe in divinities.
C1: So Meletus is committed to the claim that I do believe in
divinities.
P3: But Meletus is also committed to the claim that I am an atheist.
C2: So Meletus is contradicting himself.
1.
Socrates
would not stop or change his practice in order to save his own life.
2.
If
the Athenians put Socrates to death, then they are harming themselves.
3.
Socrates,
as an honest man, would not have survived a political career.
4.
Socrates
deserves a reward for the life his led and his service to the Athenians.
1.
It
is better to die as a just person than to live as an unjust person.
2.
Fear
of death is unwise, as it involves thinking that we know what we do not know.
3.
Death
must not be a bad thing for Socrates, as a virtuous and rational life has led
him to it.
4.
Death
is not bad (for a virtuous person):
P1: Death either
involves a total cessation of consciousness or a migration to another
consciousness.
P2: If death
involves a total cessation of consciousness, then it will be better than
continuing to live in this life.
P3: If
death involves a migration, then it will be better that continuing to live this
life.
C: So death will be better than continuing to live this life.