Socrates and Plato

Today in class, we took notes on Socrates and Plato both in the textbook and on Mr. Schick's power point. Below are the notes from today's class.

Socrates

• looked to science and logic (not the mythological gods) for an explanation of how the world works; believed the absolute standards did exist for truth and justice.
• the Socratic method fostered critical thinking
• "the unexamined life was not worth living"
• brought to trial for corrupting the youth and impiety (disrespecting the gods).
• at the trial, he described himself as a gadfly and Athens as a lazy old horse.
• didn't plead guilty; in fact, he asked for free dinners for life.
• found guilty by the Athenian jury and was sentenced to death by drinking hemlock poisoning.

Plato

• student and follower of Socrates
• ideal society- citizens would fall naturally in 3 groups: farmers and artisans, warriors, and the ruling class.
• wrote out Socrates' teaching, and described his trial in Apology.
• Republic was Socrates' discussion of justice and the ideal state- on. of the most influential books on philosophy ever written; includes the Allegory of the Cave.