Socrates' Trial: Breaking Laws And Shaping Philosophy

Socrates was a philosopher in ancient Greece who was tried and found guilty of two charges: asebeia (impiety) against the pantheon of Athens, and corruption of the youth of the city-state. The trial of Socrates took place in 399 BC, and the majority of the dikasts (male-citizen jurors chosen by lot) voted to convict him of the two charges. The trial was held to determine the philosopher's guilt, with the accusers citing two impious acts by Socrates: failing to acknowledge the gods that the city acknowledges and introducing new deities. The death sentence of Socrates was the legal consequence of asking politico-philosophic questions of his students, which resulted in the two accusations of moral corruption and impiety.

Not believing in the Gods of Athens

Socrates was put on trial in 399 BC for two charges: asebeia (impiety) against the pantheon of Athens, and corruption of the youth of the city-state. The accusers cited two impious acts by Socrates: "failing to acknowledge the gods that the city acknowledges" and "introducing new deities".

The citizens of Athens knew Socrates as an intellectual and moral gadfly of their society. In the comic play, The Clouds, Aristophanes represents Socrates as a sophistic philosopher who teaches a young man how to formulate arguments that justify striking and beating his father. Athenians associated the philosophic teachings of Socrates with Sophism. As philosophers, the Sophists were men of ambiguous reputation. They were considered "a set of charlatans that appeared in Greece in the fifth century BC, and earned ample livelihood by imposing on public credulity: professing to teach virtue, they really taught the art of fallacious discourse, and meanwhile propagated immoral practical doctrines."

Socrates was also charged with worshipping false gods and being an atheist, which seems contradictory. He made several references to his spirit, or daimonion, although he explicitly claimed that it never urged him on, but only warned him against various prospective actions.

Socrates' trial can be seen as a conflict between two equally justified goods: the "Spirit" of the Athenian People and Socrates, the figure of "subjective morality being born". However, it is important to note that Socrates did not oppose the "objective morality" of the Athenian state and had perfectly integrated into their society.

Socrates' choice to stay in Athens and abide by the decisions of Athenian law indicates his strong belief in civil obedience. He even argues fervently against breaking any laws and against having willingly committed crimes. His death was a result of his extreme obedience to Athenian statutes and court decisions, coupled with his philosophy of never committing crimes.

Introducing new deities

Socrates was a Greek philosopher from Athens, widely regarded as the founder of Western philosophy. In 399 BC, he was put on trial and found guilty of two charges: asebeia (impiety) against the pantheon of Athens, and corruption of the youth of the city-state. The accusers cited two impious acts by Socrates: "failing to acknowledge the gods that the city acknowledges" and "introducing new deities".

The charge of introducing new deities was likely based on Socrates' belief in a daimonion—an inner voice that he heard when he was about to make a mistake. This was interpreted by his accusers as having a divine origin. Additionally, Socrates rejected the traditional Greek religious belief in the anthropomorphism of the gods, denying that the gods did bad things like humans do.

Socrates' concept of the divine was notably different from the traditional Greek gods. He believed that the gods were inherently wise, just, and perfect, and that they did not engage in the same immoral actions as humans. He also questioned the practice of sacrifices to the gods, arguing that they were useless and driven by self-interest. Instead, he advocated for philosophy and the pursuit of knowledge as the principal way of worshipping the gods.

In his defence, Socrates claimed that he was "God's gift" to the Athenians, and that his activities ultimately benefited the city. However, the majority of the jurors voted to convict him of the charges and sentenced him to death by drinking a poisonous beverage of hemlock.

Moral corruption of Athenian youth

Socrates was put on trial in 399 BC for the moral corruption of the youth of Athens and impiety against the pantheon of Athens. The trial was held to determine the philosopher's guilt on two charges: asebeia (impiety) and corruption of the youth of the city-state. The accusers cited two impious acts by Socrates: "failing to acknowledge the gods that the city acknowledges" and "introducing new deities".

The death sentence of Socrates was the legal consequence of asking politico-philosophical questions of his students, which resulted in the two accusations of moral corruption and impiety. Socrates was known for his elenctic examination method for intellectual inquiry, which threatened the credibility of other intellectuals. His method was often imitated by the young men of Athens.

Socrates was also associated with Alcibiades, an Athenian general who had been a proponent of the Sicilian Expedition during the Peloponnesian Wars. Alcibiades was a student and close friend of Socrates, and his messmate during the siege of Potidaea. Socrates remained Alcibiades' close friend, admirer, and mentor for about five or six years. Alcibiades' complex friendship with Socrates was put on display during a speech at the Symposium, where he both praised Socrates and disclosed his emotional turmoil due to his personal desires. Alcibiades accused Socrates of arrogance and used the audience as a jury to judge Socrates' pride. However, Socrates remained silent, demonstrating self-control that challenged Alcibiades' values. Alcibiades admitted that Socrates' teachings inspired a shift in his thinking, focusing on his inner character over his outward success.

The citizens of Athens blamed the teachings of Socrates for instilling the younger generation with a morally nihilistic and disrespectful attitude towards their society. In the comic play "The Clouds", Aristophanes represents Socrates as a sophistic philosopher who teaches a young man how to formulate arguments that justify striking and beating his father. Despite Socrates' denial of any association with the Sophists, the playwright indicates that Athenians associated his philosophic teachings with Sophism. The Sophists were philosophers known for their ambiguous reputation, often seen as "charlatans" who taught immoral and fallacious discourse.

Socrates' trial and conviction for corrupting the youth of Athens reflected the societal tensions and inter-generational conflict prevalent in Athens at the time. His death sentence was passed by a majority vote, with the citizens fearing that disobeying the gods would bring more war and plague upon the city. Socrates accepted his sentence and drank the poisonous hemlock beverage, remaining faithful to his teaching of civic obedience to the law.

Contempt for Athenian democracy

Socrates was tried and found guilty of two charges: asebeia (impiety) against the pantheon of Athens, and corruption of the youth of the city-state. The accusers cited two impious acts by Socrates: "failing to acknowledge the gods that the city acknowledges" and "introducing new deities".

Socrates was known to have held anti-democratic views. He believed that it is not majority opinion that yields correct policy but rather genuine knowledge and professional competence, which is possessed by only a few. Plato portrays him as being severely critical of some of the most prominent and well-respected leaders of Athenian democracy. Socrates also often praised the laws of the undemocratic regimes of Sparta and Crete.

Socrates' association with Alcibiades and Critias, both of whom were students of his, also contributed to the perception of his contempt for Athenian democracy. Alcibiades was an Athenian general who defected to Sparta, Athens' arch-enemy, and was a main proponent of the Sicilian Expedition, which resulted in the deaths of thousands of Athenian soldiers. Critias was a leader of the Thirty Tyrants, a ruthless oligarchic regime that ruled Athens for eight months.

Socrates' trial has been interpreted as a result of his preaching a philosophy that produced individuals like Alcibiades and Critias, who were seen as a threat to traditional Athenian values. His death has been viewed by some as a demonstration of the defects of democracy and popular rule.

Support of oligarchic rule

The philosopher Socrates was put on trial in 399 BC and found guilty of two charges: asebeia (impiety) against the pantheon of Athens, and corruption of the youth of the city-state. The trial was held to determine the philosopher's guilt, and the accusers cited two impious acts by Socrates: "failing to acknowledge the gods that the city acknowledges" and "introducing new deities".

Socrates was also accused of supporting oligarchic rule and showing contempt for Athenian democracy. According to some portraits left by his followers, Socrates openly espoused certain anti-democratic views. For example, he believed that it is not majority opinion that yields correct policy, but rather genuine knowledge and professional competence, which is possessed by only a few. Plato portrays him as being severely critical of some of the most prominent and well-respected leaders of Athenian democracy. Socrates was also known for often praising the laws of the undemocratic regimes of Sparta and Crete.

The totalitarian Thirty Tyrants, who ruled Athens as puppets of Sparta, were led by Critias, a pupil of Socrates. Several of the Thirty had been students of Socrates, but records also show their falling out. While Socrates remained in Athens during the reign of the Thirty, it is not clear if he supported their rule. However, his association with them and his anti-democratic views likely contributed to the perception that he supported oligarchic rule.

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