The Perils Of Socrates

I Xenophon have come to the courts today to defend Socrates, a fine man. I was a pupil of Socrates and I am here to personally object to the charges facing my teacher. I would like to start off by stating that Socrates was a very wise man. He was an intellect that many yearned to learn from. I had the privilege of attending his lectures and hearing him sermon for hours on end about complex issues and philosophies. He was a man with the astuteness of many before and after. He taught me personally how to become an effective speaker within assembly. He was a man that had a say on just about every topic and in turn made me more aware. He did have many criticisms to make but they were all valid. His views matched my own and therefore my learning …show more content…
Socrates had many students and they all came bearing an open mind, stable sense of individuality and a thirst for knowledge. This mindset allowed everyone to openly learn and make decisions and values upon their own merit. No one was ever forced to side with Socrates; my peers based our knowledge on our own virtues. Socrates made sure that he would never impose his ideas on anyone; rather we would just preach what he thought. This was different in comparison to other philosophers I have heard. Socrates most commonly discussed subjective topics such as: justice, prudence; madness; courage, states, statesman; governments, and governors (Xenophon iii, 9, 5). All these topics have much room for personal interpretation as well as understanding. We the pupils strictly decided how we were to use the knowledge that was bestowed upon us. All of the scholars under Socrates credo had a separable mind and a strong will. We all made decisions on our own and acted based on our own intentions. Many of us were also taught by others as well and therefore formed many opinions on a vast majority of topics. It is hard for me to understand why one man is being blamed for the sole corruption of an entire generation of young adults within …show more content…
He wanted to see all the men in Athens learn and become closer to the form of the good. He wanted to educate and train the souls of men towards the right desires. Socrates wanted to teach as many people about the concept of wholeness and how this would directly lead to a happy city. Socrates also believed firmly in the good of the people. Within the Republic Socrates mentions that those who act justly will not go unrewarded by God. This principal can be carried over to explain Socrates good intensions. Since he is a philosopher the republic argues that Socrates is best able to understand and apply what is good for the city. His sense of what’s best for the city, his understanding of justice and his ability to teach the good to others allowed Socrates to be an influential role model that would ultimately benefit the city and the youth. If Socrates were corrupting the youth all his hard word within these areas would go to waste. Socrates would not voluntarily corrupt the youth because that in turn would work against the good of the people, and work against one of his main philosophies. This would also cause problems for himself; teaching unjustly would ultimately lead to a greater punishment from God as well as harm him. Socrates gave up his entire life to the service of his city, the people and God. Socrates used his connection with the God’s to fuel his