I. Introduction- The Life of Socrates (Perdue, 2014)
Overview of the Hierarchy- A brief overview of who mentored whom, and their greatest contribution to the study of Philosophy.
Brief biography of Socrates- An overview of some of the most significant information about the life of Socrates.
II. Body- The Apology of Socrates (Plato)
The Accusation and the Accusers (17a to 19a)– Narrates the accusation against Socrates, and how he addressed these accusations. He also recognized the difficulty of convincing the youth of his innocence.
The Oracle at Delphi (19a to 24e0- Socrates addressed his Meletus, and his accusation about his misuse of his wisdom. As he tried to disprove the oracle in Delphi, he then proved that it is important for one to acknowledge that there are things one does not know.
The Elenchus (24e to 32e)- Socrates questions Meletus through the use of elenchus, or cross-questioning. He uses the horse trainer analogy to rebut the arguments of Meletus accusing Socrates of being a bad influence to the youth of Athens by allegedly influencing them to believe in supernatural beings.
Socrates and the Youth of Athens (32e to 38b)- After cross-examining his accusers and defending himself, Socrates was voted guilty, for which Meletus proposed death penalty as punishment. Socrates, until the end, stood firm that he did not deserve any punishment because he believes that he has not done any intentional harm to the youth of Athens.
III. The Decision- Socrates made his final speech to the jury after a vote to execute death penalty over him was made. He did not choose to just ask for the jury’s mercy, though he could, for he considers this as a disgrace. He concluded his speech by giving a warning to those who opposed him to give heed to more people who would criticize them and their doings.
Reference
Perdue, S. (2014, September 19). The Big Three of Greek Philosophy: Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle. Retrieved September 2, 2016, from http://sites.psu.edu/rclperdue/2014/09/19/the-big-three-of-greek-philosophy-socrates-plato-and-aristotle/
Plato. (n.d.). Plato's Apology of Socrates [PDF]. Retrieved September 2, 2016 from http://www.sjsu.edu/people/james.lindahl/courses/Phil70A/s3/apology.pdf
