Critical thinking, it’s what separates us from the masses. Socrates died for his personal and philosophical beliefs. He died for the action of critically thinking and the belief that everyone one should develop their own opinion, which perhaps differs from the gods. The masses he believed were a nameless and selfish public opinion that was always changing. He was defending beliefs that have been developed over time versus a public opinion that is constantly in changing motion. The morality defended by Socrates is built on three basic ideals a combination of beliefs, principles, and character over time. As stated in “Real World” Ethics by Robert J. Nash, Back grounds beliefs are developed though our experience good or bad. Principles are “developed overtime and agreed to by everyone as right way to live”. Lastly, moral character which are “the guides provided to us over time by our communities”.[i] These three moral ideals outline what Socrates had been fighting for and believed were worth dying for. As made appoint in the Apology he could not put a name to the masses, represented by the shallowness of thinking in public opinion, the ones who were deciding his fate. Socrates alludes to this in his statement “But all the rest who have persuaded you, from motive of resentment and prejudice, and sometime, it may be, from conviction, are hardest to cope with. For I cannot call any one of them forward in court to cross-examine him.”[ii] Ironically this was his point the fact that we all hide behind one general opinion instead of truly understanding and having our own. Socrates was dealt a matter of choices, for us to look upon them now they seem like a matter of tests to show his true purpose. He could have converted to the public opinion; however he didn’t base on his morals. He also could have escaped and continue to live with the help of his friends. However, he would then be breaking his beliefs and at that point become a martyr. If he would have escaped it would affect the integrity of his personal and philosophical beliefs causing them to become corrupt, just what he was charged with. However by staying and accepting his fate he remains truthful and making the sacrifice worthy as his teaching has stood the test of time. This is proven by Aristotle, whom was taught with the Socrates personal and philosophical beliefs, who stated “For the courageous person is one who, above all, stands firm and keeps his head in the midst of danger”.[iii] This is exactly what Socrates did. He did not enfold on his beliefs yet fought for them and importance of individual thinking which has and continued to have a constant impact and relevance in our society.
Good work, Megan. You make a number of compelling points - and manage to bring in some secondary sources. Be careful not to sacrifice your own engagement with the primary text in order to bring in the ideas of other thinkers. Your response would benefit from a more focused look at Socrates' actions, without the lens of the secondary texts you bring in. The direction of your argument is not entirely clearly throughout this blog post, so be sure to let us know what you are arguing at the start - and then proceed to defend your points (using textual and secondary evidence).
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