What charges against Socrates are recorded in the Apology? Is he guilty of them? Why or why not?
The accusations placed against Socrates include:
- Studying the activities in the heavens and below the earth.
- He gets people to believe in a weak argument against a stronger one.
- Teaching the youth how to make arguments thus corrupting them.
- His lessons for people not to believe in the gods of the city (Burnyeat 11).
Studying the activities in the heavens and below the earth
Regarding this charge, Socrates argues that he is not interested in anything happening in heaven or below the earth and, therefore, he is not guilty. He argues that he has respect for people who are experts in studying the things in the heavens and below the earth. In addition, he refutes not being one of these experts and with no interest in such work (Burnyeat 9). Predicting the things in the heavens and below the earth associates him with the physicists such as Thales and Anaxagoras; however, Socrates argues that he is not interested in their work (Burnyeat 11).
He corrupts the youth by encouraging them to embrace criticism
The accusation came about because Socrates attracted enormous attention from the young men in Athens. Through his cross-examining of prominent people in public places, Socrates had a lot of influence on the youth. He promoted criticism among the youth due to his criticism of authority. The accused puts up an argument that he does not conduct any of the activities conducted by the trainers since harming the youth involuntarily would also hurt him. Education should be the consequence other than punishment. Socrates also says that if he voluntarily corrupted the youth, then they would in turn hurt him, and no one harms self knowingly (Burnyeat 11). His argument is that there is a difference between him and the teachers, that is, the trainers charged for their teachings but Socrates did not. The individual was guilty of this charge since his teachings influenced the youth even though involuntarily.
Socrates was accused of making weak arguments appear stronger
In this accusation, Socrates was associated with the Sophists. The sophists got people to believe in a particular argument even if it was a weak one. The sophists were not to be trusted, and they influenced the people negatively especially for political gain. Through their arguments, they were able to make people adopt their points of view (Burnyeat 11). He says that there exists a clear distinction between him and the sophists asking people to pay for the teachings, but he does not ask for any payments. The philosopher even criticizes such behaviors by the sophists and says it is ridiculous. Socrates is for this reason has representation among elites as not guilty of this charge of developing and propagating such arguments in the society (McPherran 125).
He teaches people, not to believe in the gods
Socrates uses natural explanations for natural occurrences and this results in the charges that his belief was not in the theocracies that were followed by the Roman emperors (McPherran 125). Socrates regarded the gods of the city as a hot rock; a view undermined the Roman political authority resulting in a crime of impiety (McPherran 125). He says that he believes in a Diamon and his faith in a Diamon is an indication that he believes in deities, and he is not against the gods of the city (Burnyeat 3). Despite his arguments, Socrates is guilty of impiety since he referred to the gods as hot rock and failed to honor them.
Works Cited
Burnyeat, Myles F. “The impiety of Socrates.” Ancient Philosophy 17.1 (1997): 1-12.Print.
McPherran, Mark L. “Recognizing the Gods of Socrates.” Apeiron 30.4 (1997): 125-140.Print.