What Is Justice For Socrates And Augustine Who (Or What) Is The Essay

What Is Justice For Socrates And Augustine Who (Or What) Is The Highest Authority To Judge - Essay Example Socrates and Augustine were two philosophers that were born into very different ages, filled with different social influences, different religions and different pressures. These differences drove the philosophical theories of the men, and how they defined justice as well as who or what they perceived as the highest authority to judge them. Socrates was born in 470 BC and executed by poison in 399 BC, a time at which Greek religion was prominent. His philosophy was auditory, through dialogue and the exchange of questions and answers with those he was talking with. As a consequence he produced no written works of his philosophy; however, his student Plato produced many written dialogues of Socrates’ philosophy. The dialogues Apology and Crito provide strong indications of his philosophy in regards to justice and the authority to judge. Augustine was born into a much later time, 354 AD, where parts of the Roman Empire were collapsing, and Christianity was becoming the dominant re ligion. His series of autobiographic books Confessions chronicle his life up till his early 40s and include many philosophical and theological discussions concerning God. These books show the way in which Augustine views justice and judgment. Socrates Socrates was born in 470 BC and died in 399 BC. ... This ‘Socratic Method’ involved him asking probing questions in a manner that eventually led them to the truth. He would spend a large amount of time in public places, engaging citizens in discussion in an attempt to draw them into greater levels of self-analysis. Plato was a student of Socrates from a young age and wrote many dialogues based on the philosophy that he learned. In the years surrounding 380 BC Plato established a school which forwarded education with focuses on math, music, athletics, philosophy and sciences. Beyond Plato, the only other writer who recorded the philosophy of Socrates was Xenophon; however he did not always portray Socrates philosophically. As a consequence, the writings of Plato are the only indication of Socrates’ philosophy, and it is difficult to tell what parts is Plato’s own philosophy and which are from Socrates. Apology Apology is titled for the term for a Greek defense speech, apologia. Socrates has been brought to tr ial before the court of Athens with the accusations of corrupting youth, inventing new gods and not recognizing those gods that are accepted by the state. Apology consists of his defense speech against the charges which includes the cross examination of his main accuser, Meletus. In his dialogue with Meletus, Socrates leads him through questions into charging Socrates both with the invention of new gods and with atheism, two contradictory charges. When asked what method of punishment he would prefer on the verdict of guilty, Socrates opts for death over prison or exile, as he will never stop philosophizing and does not fear death. Throughout Apology, Socrates repeatedly and consistently defends his right to be a philosopher and to the way in which he lives. He makes it clear to the court that the aim