Socrates' Apology

Nicholas Mason
History of Greece
Professor Ruzicka
November 10, 2015

Socrates' Apology

         Socrates says quite a lot in his apology and for good reason, he was on trial for impiety and corrupting the youth. As was almost customary in Athenian courts, the accusers and defendants had to speak for themselves because there were no lawyers. Socrates did his absolute best to defend himself in court not just to avoid incarceration and death but also to save his reputation and pride.
         Socrates was a very smart man and he knew what to say when it counted but if one was to ask him if he was truly the smartest of the Greeks he would deny it. In the beginning of his apology he talks about his accusers being incredibly persuasive by saying, "How you have felt, O men of Athens, at hearing the speeches of my accusers, I cannot tell; but I know that their persuasive words almost made me forget who I was - such was the effect of them; and yet they have hardly spoken a word of truth". Socrates says this for multiple reasons. One reason he says this is because he wants the people to believe that he is an average man and is not above them intellectually and another reason is because in the Athenian society a good speaker that persuades someone to think a certain way has somehow tricked that person and should not be trusted. He implies that his accusers have tricked them into believing what they have said and to not listen to them because they have not said one thing true. Socrates continues by saying how he is not a speech giver and he would prefer the people to not judge what he says because of his inexperience with the court. Socrates states that he is inexperienced by saying, "For I am more than seventy years of age, and this is the first time that I have ever appeared in a court of law, and I am quite a stranger to the ways of the place; and therefore I would have you regard me as if I were really a stranger, whom you would excuse if he spoke in his native tongue". He was trying to be respectful toward the people of the court so that they are respectful toward him.
         Socrates' "mission" was to convince the people of the court that he was innocent of his accusers' accusations. He wished the court to judge him based on logic and not by emotion because the play by Aristophanes made Socrates look like a liar and a villain. Socrates states that he is going to erase the peoples' old thoughts about him by saying, "Well, then, I will make my defense, and I will endeavor in the short time which is allowed to do away with this evil opinion of me which you have held for such a long time, and I hope I may succeed, if this be well for you and me, and that my words may favor with you". Socrates is saying that it is his turn to speak and not his accusers. He says that he will eliminate the idea that he is a bad man trying to get the young to follow him and listen to him. Socrates knew this was not going to be easy, he even admits that he sees how difficult it would be to change the people's minds but he still tries his best.
         Socrates emphasized the importance of "examining one's life" in the sense of how they see what is right and wrong. Societies could believe something totally different than Athens and Socrates knew this and was trying to explain it to the people of the court that one may judge the actions of others but first that judge must know what is truly right and wrong. To see what one has learned and what one believes is to examine one's life. After examining one's life that one must ask themselves if they truly believe in the right things, if they are living a proper life, and how they can change themselves for the better but in order to do that one must look deep into their mind and soul and not judge the world based on emotions but logic.
         All of this has an incredible political significance toward Athenian democracy because it shows that a majority can be easily persuaded to think something else. Two speech givers can give a speech one day and then give the same speeches on another day and the outcome may be different, not because of the speakers but because for some reason the majority changed their minds. This gives democracy a big problem that is impossible to fix due to the human condition.