But of the many falsehoods which they uttered I wondered at one of them especially, that in which they said that you ought to be on your guard lest you should be deceived by me, as being eloquent in speech. I know not, O Athenians! 78 how far you have been influenced by my accusers 79 for my part, in listening to them I almost forgot myself, so plausible were their arguments however, so to speak, they have said nothing true. Looking at "The Apology" as Socrates' last chance to teach the Athenians something, what do you think he tried to teach them?Įdited, annotated, and compiled by Rhonda L.Some have said that Socrates behaves arrogantly.What is that the audience is feeling? Are they cheering or booing him? How can you tell? Does he agitate them on purpose? You will notice as you read the Socrates has to ask the 500 judges to settle down periodically.What is Socrates attitude toward the trial and his prosecutors? What about the judges?.Questions to consider while reading this selection: Plato, Socrates' faithful student, was an attendant at both his trial and his subsequent execution, and he gifted to us "The Apology" which stands over two millennia later as a monument to freedom and justice and truth. Socrates's farewell to Athens: After being sentenced to death, Socrates spoke to both his detractors and his supporters.The sentencing plea: Having been found guilty, Socrates was expected to request exile, but he refused to do so.The defense proper: Socrates answered the charges levelled against him."The Apology" consists of the following three speeches: In his defense, Socrates argued that he only questioned authority in an effort to keep the state healthy and that he himself had nearly been the victim of Critias for refusing to do the bidding of the Thirty Tyrants. It had therefore been rumored for some time that Socrates' teachings were dangerous because they led men to rebel against the state. We do not know exactly what the prosecution said in its presentation, because that has not been recorded for us, but it can be assumed that mention was made of some of Socrates' students, like the politician Critias (one of the Thirty Tyrants) and the general Alcibiades, both of whom supported Athens' rival Sparta and were regarded as traitors. At the age of 71, Socrates was charged by the prosecutors Anytus and Miletus with corruption of the youth of Athens, sophistry (fraudulent teaching practices), and heresy.
"The Apology" (which means, simply, "defense") is Plato's account of the three speeches that Socrates gave at his trial in 399 B.C.E.
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