Western Civ Blog 25

Today in class we went over some more slides in the Greece is the word powerpoint. First we learned about socrates. Socrates looked to science and logic, not the mythological gods, for explanations of how the world worked. The Socratic Method fostered critical thinking. Socrates was charged with serious crimes for impiety, disrespecting the gods, and corrupting the youth of Athens. At his trial, he described himself as a stinging gadfly, and Athens as a lazy old horse. He did not deny what he had done, asked for free dinners. He was found guilty by an Athenian jury, and sentenced to death by drinking poison hemlock. Then we learned about Plato who was a student and follower of Socrates. He wrote out Socrates’ teachings, and described his trial in his other book, Apology. Republic was Socrates’ discussion of justice and the ideal state. It one of the most influential books on philosophy ever written, it includes the Allegory of the Cave.