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Plato and Xenophon: Apologies |
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Plato and Xenophon: Apologies 2006 • 1-58510-188-5 • paper • 74 pages • 5 ½ x 8 ½ • $10.95 Plato and Xenophon: Apologies compares two key dialogues on the trial of Socrates, including the hard-to-find Xenophon’s Apology. Socrates was accused of impiety and corrupting the youth of ancient Athens and was tried, convicted, imprisoned, and executed. Both Plato and Xenophon make clear that the charges were not brought forward in the spirit of true piety, and that Socrates was a man of real virtue and beneficence. To this day, his trial and execution remain a mark upon the democracy that put him to death. | About the Author | Table of Contents | Preface | Review | |
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Description Plato and Xenophon: Apologies compares two key dialogues on the death of Socrates, including the hard-to-find Xenophon’s Apology. Socrates was accused of impiety and corrupting the youth of ancient Athens and was tried, convicted, imprisoned, and executed. Both Plato and Xenophon make clear that the charges were not brought forward in the spirit of true piety, and that Socrates was a man of real virtue and beneficence. To this day, his trial and execution remain a mark upon the democracy that put him to death.
These dialogues underscore the
limitations of democratic relativism and emphasize the nature of
philosophy or the free mind. Plato’s Apology of Socrates is both
poetry and an act of reformation — justifying the life of philosophy,
challenging the authority of the pagan gods and heroes, and introducing
Socrates as a heroic and even divine figure. In contrast, Xenophon’s
Socrates is not dialectical and otherworldly, but makes a different
appeal for philosophy. From Xenophon emerges the heroic tradition of
Plutarch with its reflections on the virtues and vices of great
historical men. |
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Mark Kremer (Ph.D., University of Chicago) is Assistant Professor of Political Science at Kennesaw State University, with a research focus on political philosophy and political literature. He formerly taught at Boston University, and recently edited and contributed to Plato’s Cleitophon: On Socrates and the Modern Mind.
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Preface
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Socrates was accused of impiety and of corrupting the youth. Since ancient Athenian democracy had no separation of church from state, these religious accusations were also legal charges. He was eventually tried, convicted, imprisoned, and executed though both Plato and Xenophon make clear that the charges were not brought forward in the spirit of true piety, and that Socrates was a man of real virtue and beneficence. To this day, his trial and execution remain a mark upon the democracy that put him to death. Socrates would
have certainly avoided the hemlock were he born into our modern
democracy, but that is not to say that he would be free to live his life
of questioning. It is not even to say that the modern state is more
tolerant of philosophy than ancient democracy. Athens was not as hostile
to Socrates as one might first suppose, nor are we as open to him as we
like to believe. Had Socrates wished, he could have easily avoided his
guilty sentence and his execution. Plato makes this clear in a number of
ways and Xenophon states it outright. Furthermore, the vehemence with
which Socrates is today condemned by our educational overseers surpasses
Athenian democracy’s hatred for him. If we would not kill him, it is
only because we have invented other ways in which to silence his
questions. |
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“Kremer’s is an attractive text because of its combination of simplicity and strong delivery, and this is true regarding his translation and his interpretive essay alike. He has striven for a scrupulous accuracy in his translation, and he has achieved this without sacrificing readability or neglecting the distinctive tone of Plato and Xenophon.” -- Norma Thompson,Yale University This is an outstanding text in every respect. The translations are scrupulously literal but readily accessible. The interpretive essay will prove very helpful to students; as for the scholars, no one could deny that everything Kremer has to say is genuinely thought-provoking. This text should be of interest to all scholars and teachers of classical political philosophy, the history of political philosophy, ancient Athenian democracy, and the teachings of Plato and Xenophon — and the challenges they pose to current “post-modern” philosophy. -- Michael Palmer, University of Maine
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