The Apology of Socrates Essay Example

An individual follows the crowd as a way to run away from their own reality, but Socrates as it pertains to his beliefs and stance chose to be his own crowd and not succumb to the norms of the corrupt society in which he resided. In “The Apology” Socrates’ intellectual curiosity challenges the opposing crowd’s through application of both formal and informal diction, structure, and his sophisticated tone, as a way to maneuver through what the people believe is equitable juxtaposing to what he perceives as moral and coherent. Great minds don’t always think alike, just like being alike isn’t always great: Socrates wasn’t like the crowd.

The crowd were convinced Socrates' beliefs were corrupting the youth. The term “corrupt” is usually defined as dishonest and morally wrong. Socrates was put on trial for “corrupting the youth of Athens''. But why was one’s personal opinion considered wrong? That’s simply because Socrates took the initiative and went down his own path with awareness. The majority preferred to follow a certain lifestyle that was deemed to be the “right way”, so ultimately anything proven against the norm is wrong and should be punished. With Socrates applied intellectual curiosity, through both formal and informal diction he is able to construct his own argument and statements to the crowd when brought forth the judges to plead his case, although it doesn’t convince the crowd, it emphasizes the juxtaposition between his beliefs and the majority’s. Socrates style of expressions portrays that he is aware he isn’t better than everyone else and that is what differentiates him from those of higher statues like poets and artisans, he states, “I observed that even the good artisans fell into the same error as the poets; because they were good workmen they thought that they also knew all sorts of high matters… And I made answer to myself and to the oracle that I was better off as I was'’ (The Apology 4). It’s within this statement that Socrates ensures that he is different from the crowd, despite the statues of poets and their immense knowledge it didn’t equate to his wisdom. Socrates wasn’t corrupting the youth, he was simply stating his beliefs which were seen as wrong from what was normal and that was seen as crime. Through his application of his style of diction it swayed into his more sophisticated tone. 

Socrates isn’t scared to speak what’s on his mind, others may wither away from their own opinions as a way to not be targeted as Socrates was, but with his very open and assertive tone when declaring his “apology”, we see that Socrates isn’t phased on what the crowd declares about the type of person he is. As a matter of fact he raises awareness that his honesty raises red flags around others who are portrayed of higher status. With his recollection of his conversation with someone who had a reputation of wisdom he mentions, “...and thereupon I tried to explain to him that he thought himself wise, but was not really wise; and the consequence was that he hated me, and his enmity was shared by several” (The Apology 3). Socrates speaks of the truth and gets shamed for it because his intellect is considered a weapon to those who like to be told what they want to hear. It’s his honesty that makes him different from the crowd. To better emphasize his sophisticated tone on his awareness, Socrates applies it through a question and answer session with Meletus where he ask Meletus a series of questions that eventually proved there were really no true intentions of his trial, he was paying the consequences because of enmity from a source of people who were convinced he was trickling away from the crowd to be independent. Within his interrogative session with Meletus, Socrates references multiple allusions further contextualizing his argument against Meletus false accusations towards him, “You might as well affirm the existence of mules, and deny that of horses and asses. Such nonsense, Meletus, could only have been intended by you to make trial of me. You have put this into indictment because you had nothing real of which to accuse me” (The Apology 8). Socrates' use of his tone and diction, allows the audience to truly understand his perspective by questioning those who oppose him, eventually causing them to contradict themselves. It is made possible because Socrates strategically applies his level of wisdom as a way to dig deeper into concepts that challenge the opposing being. 

When defending oneself in regards to something falsely claimed against you, you have to think and talk strategically. That is exactly how Socrates approached his defense in the court. Socrates strategically provides a valid argument supporting his logic that in reality he isn’t corrupting the youth, he is in fact persuading them to get out of their old ways. This is where the concept of following a crowd ties into it because it is conveyed that those who could have been “corrupted” are in the age range to determine and speak on behalf of their corruption and voice their opinion on whether or not they were affected, but they chose to stay within the crowd. It is stated, “ For I do nothing but go about persuading you all, old and young alike, not to take thought for your persons or your properties, but first and chiefly to care about the greatest improvement of the soul… This is my teaching, and if this is the doctrine which corrupts the youth, I am a mischievous person” (The Apology 9). Socrates argues that what's referred to as corruption is merely persuasion. It is with the consistency with his beliefs and words that provides structure and stability in his doctrine, it’s what distinguishes him from everyone else, because if Socrates wasn’t aware of what he speaks on, he wouldn’t be capable of defending his position as a supposed “corrupter”. 

One may argue that Socrates' polarity from the crowd may have harmed him more than it helped him. Socrates as we know talks a lot, his difference from others is emphasized because of his sophisticated but indulging accounts with individuals. It’s this style of diction that inputs him in situations where he is targeted; like being put on trial. Socrates' opinions and perspectives brought him to his death because at the end of the day his independence and intellect didn’t stop him from being executed. As a matter of fact Socrates may have endangered himself by self-gloating on his amount of his wisdom, for he stated, “For if you kill me you will not easily find a successor to me, if I may use such a luducious figure of speech, am sort of gadfly, given to the state by God… You will not easily find another like me, and therefore I would advise you to spare me”(The Apology 10) . From this statement Socrates seems to be very self- absorbed, for he thinks that he is an important contribution to the society and without him they are doomed. Although Socrates didn’t follow the crowd, he seemed to think he was better than the crowd which isn’t ideal for someone who is already on trial for something ruled by the majority. However, Socrates' difference from the crowd actually puts him at an advantage, despite in the end he still died, he remains truthful to his words and his persona. Socrates voiced his opinion with confidence and passion. In his time most people didn’t really stand up to the authority or beliefs of a society, he defeated that by speaking his mind and staying by his words. He chose to not succumb like everyone else. 

A crowd is meant to bring light to a matter of importance, but what is the significance of a crowd if it's used to escape from reality and to just fall into the loophole of others? Socrates had a well-known reputation for voicing his opinion in any matter, and when he was put on trial for corrupting the youth of Athens it not only brought light to his wisdom but to the wisdom of those around him. In “The Apology” Socrates’ intellectual curiosity challenges the opposing crowd’s through application of both formal and informal diction, structure, and his sophisticated tone. All tactics proven successful when given the chance to defend his case. Although it didn't save him, Socrates' wisdom allowed him to stray away from what the crowd followed because he believed there were other options and with that curiosity he seeked it furthermore, then shared his findings. His intellectual curiosity helped him reveal the different aspects of what exactly is the right way of living and what isn’t. Great minds don’t always think alike, just like being alike isn’t always great. Socrates had a great and perplexing mind in his hand that he put to use, and those with a reputation of wisdom when examined weren’t all that great compared to him. Your status doesn’t always determine your level of intellect.