Zusammenfassung
Zusammenfassung von Apology
Für wen es gedacht ist
For anyone curious about where Western philosophy begins or what it means to stand by your convictions under pressure. It also suits first-time readers of Plato who enjoy questions about wisdom, duty and death.
Worum es in diesem Buch geht
The Apology is Plato's account of the speech Socrates gave in 399 BC, when he stood trial in Athens before a jury of 501 citizens. The charges were that he did not honor the gods of the city, that he brought in new divine things, and that he corrupted the young. Plato was there as a young man, and he wrote the work after Socrates died. The word apology here comes from the Greek apologia, which means a defense, not an expression of regret.
The book is short, and it is nearly all one voice. Socrates answers his accusers, tells the jury how he came to live as he does, and says what he thinks about wisdom, duty and death. You get a portrait of a man who will not bend his principles to save himself, and a clear picture of how Socrates argued. Let us begin with the rumors that lay behind the trial.
In dieser Zusammenfassung
- 1Old slanders are harder to answerFree
- 2The oracle set him questioning others
- 3Meletus cannot defend his own charge
- 4Duty matters more than staying alive
- 5The gadfly serves the city
- 6How to face a verdict and death
Punkt 1 von 6
Old slanders are harder to answer
Socrates opens by saying he faces two sets of accusers. The first are the recent ones, who brought the formal charges. The second are older and more dangerous, because they have whispered against him for years, when many of the jurors were children. These rumors say that he studies the sky and the earth, and that he makes the weaker argument defeat the stronger.
Socrates points to the comic playwright Aristophanes, whose play The Clouds showed a character named Socrates hanging in a basket and teaching tricks of speech. He says he has nothing to do with such matters. He does not teach for money, as the sophists, the traveling teachers of the day, did. He names a few of them, and he notes that they charge fees and promise to make young men clever.
He also admits his weakness in this setting. The slanders are not a single person he can cross-examine, and he cannot call the old accusers to the stand. He is fighting shadows. Still, he asks the jury to listen to the truth, and he says he will speak plainly and in the style he always uses in the marketplace, not in polished courtroom phrases.
This opening matters for a reader today. It shows how a reputation can be built from jokes and gossip, and how hard it is to undo. Socrates does not plead for pity. He asks the jury only to judge whether what he says is just, and he says that this is the job of a juror, as truth-telling is the job of a speaker.
That’s 1 of 6 key points.
The rest of the summary, written and spoken, and the whole book: free to start.
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Who’s who
- Socrates
- An Athenian philosopher, he answers his accusers before the jury and explains his practice of questioning others.
- Meletus
- A young poet and formal accuser, he faces Socrates’ questions about the charges against him.
- Anytus
- One of Socrates’ formal accusers, he joins Meletus and Lycon in bringing the prosecution.
- Lycon
- One of the three formal accusers, he supports the case brought against Socrates alongside Meletus and Anytus.
- Chaerephon
- A friend of Socrates, he asks the oracle at Delphi whether anyone is wiser than Socrates.
Questions about Apology
What is the Apology by Plato about?
It is Plato's version of the speech Socrates gave at his trial in 399 BC. Socrates answers charges of impiety and corrupting the young, and explains why he lives as a questioner of others.
Does apology here mean saying sorry?
No. The Greek word apologia means a defense or a reasoned reply to an accusation. Socrates never says he regrets his way of life. He explains and defends it before the jury.
Is the Apology a true story?
Socrates was a real man and was tried in Athens in 399 BC. Plato attended the trial, but scholars debate how closely his text follows the actual words. It is generally taken as a faithful portrait of Socrates.
Is the Apology hard to read?
It is one of the easiest places to begin with Plato. It is short, it is a single speech with a clear order, and it needs little background beyond the basic Athenian setting.
What does Socrates mean by the gadfly?
He compares himself to a fly that stings a large, sleepy horse, which stands for Athens. His constant questions wake the city up and push people to care about truth and virtue.