Plato's Apology

Read the Apology. This work deals with Socrates's reasoned self-defense when he is falsely charged with crimes against the state.

Study Guide Questions:

1. How would you describe the Socratic Method? Think about what Plato demonstrates with the argument between Aristophanes and Socrates. Note that Aristophanes represents past and present poets of Socrates's era and is thus oracular in nature, whereas Socrates is conversational, meaning dialectical.
2. Consider Socrates's poverty in the context of virtue. In The Apology, Plato describes Socrates' poverty as a sort of "proof" that he was not a paid teacher - that he was only living his life in response to the proclamation by the Delphic Oracle that no one was as wise as Socrates. Is this convincing, and how so?