The Trial and Death of Socrates: Apology, Phaedo

The Trial and Death of Socrates: Apology, Phaedo
by Plato

The Trial and Death of Socrates: Apology, Phaedo
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Book Summary Information

Author: Plato
Narrator: Bruce Alexander
Edition: Music CD
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Format: Compilation, Unabridged
Published: 2001-12
ISBN: 9626342390
Publisher: Naxos Audiobooks

Book Reviews of The Trial and Death of Socrates: Apology, Phaedo

Book Review: An Unapologetic Apology
Summary: 5 Stars

Unlike the print translations of the same title, the Naxos Audiobook contains only the "Apology" and the "Phaedo." The works are presented in a not-quite full cast format, and they are as immediate as a trial from Court TV. Production values are excellent, and the actors deliver their lines in conversational fashion, without a hint of the wooden presentation that is almost impossible to avoid when speaking the written word.

I have read and re-read the "Apology" several times, but never have I been so engaged by the dialogue as when I heard it in this edition. Socrates comes across as somewhat eccentric, somewhat arrogant, but completely honorable. His sense of dignity renders him incapable of mounting an effective defense against the criminal charges, and indeed he really doesn't attempt to defend against the charges. Instead, he seeks to justify himself and his career to his students and to posterity. He thoroughly achieves this aim. Unfortunately, in the process of justifying himself to posterity, he thoroughly enraged the jury, and they voted for the death penalty by a landslide. It was almost as though that was what Socrates wanted them to do.

"Phaedo" records Socrates' last day, as he fearlessly faces death. In his last hours he and his friends discuss Socrates' ideas on the immortality of the human soul. Socrates wandered far afield as he spoke on the soul, and the philosophic exposition is both flawed and uninteresting. About halfway through the dialogue, I became impatient for Socrates to go ahead and drink the hemlock and put me out of my misery. I stuck to the end, however, and having done so, I realized that the beauty of "Phaedo" lay not in the philosophy, but in the courageous and dignified bearing of Socrates as he confronted death.

The attitude of the executioner to the condemned man is striking. Whereas Luke records the centurion who executed Christ as saying "Surely this man was innocent," Plato records Socrates' executioner as crying and begging Socrates' forgiveness. If you are not moved by the death scene, you are hard-hearted indeed.

Summary of The Trial and Death of Socrates: Apology, Phaedo

The trial and death of Socrates remains a powerful document, partly because it was a true account of one of the greatest figures in history. In "Apology", Socrates defends himself before the court against charges of corrupting youth and "Phaedo" is the account of the last words of Socrates.

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