He praised Spartan monarchy as being well managed, and in … In the dialogues of Plato, the founding father of Greek Philosophy – Socrates – is portrayed as hugely pessimistic about the whole business of democracy. ...The historical Socrates undoubtedly existed, but he did not write anything... J.S. We know that our minds are capable of great things because, every now and then, they come out with a brilliant idea or two. Democracy is a system of government in which power is vested in the people and exercised by them directly or through freely elected representatives. My father, mother, and brother taught me to always be myself, and to do what I want to do. We have preferred to think of democracy as an unambiguous good – rather than a process that is only ever as effective as the education system that surrounds it. In Book Six of The Republic, Plato describes Socrates falling into conversation with a character called Adeimantus and trying to get him to see the flaws of democracy by comparing a society to a ship. The Importance Of Democracy By Socrates. 157–58), Angelo Poliziano's Lamia: Text, Translation, and Introductory Studies (note 34), Reason and Religion in Socratic Philosophy, The Library of Apollodorus (Delphi Classics), Theater Outside Athens: Drama in Greek Sicily and South Italy, Cicero : in twenty-eight volumes. Socrates’ vigilant efforts to democratize truth are demonstrative of an exorbitant level of consciousness which irrefutably exceed that of the polis by comparative measure; Socrates renounced this sociopolitical structure to focus on seeking higher forms of truth. We have forgotten all about Socrates’s salient warnings against democracy. What a strangely fitting end to a life so very well lived. He hurts you, gives you bitter potions and tells you not to eat and drink whatever you like. No one errs or does wrong willingly or knowingly. Just anyone or people educated in the rules and demands of seafaring? A jury of 500 Athenians was invited to weigh up the case and decided by a narrow margin that the philosopher was guilty. Plato wrote Socrates’ Apology to express his ideas and opinions on the flaws of democracy. And as far as Plato could tell, the road to tyranny was well-paved. Socrates, 10.4159/DLCL.diogenes_laertius-lives_eminent_philosophers_book_ii_chapter_5_socrates.1925, The Unknown Socrates: Translations, with Introductions and Notes, of Four Important Documents in the Late Antique Reception of Socrates the Athenian, Pythagoras and the Pythagoreans: A Brief History, A Brief History of the Pythagorean Theorem, Griechische Biographie in hellenistischer Zeit: Akten des internationalen Kongresses vom 26.–29. If he escaped at the instigation of his friends, then his friends would become liable in law. "In 1964, I saw my father tear up many books, because of the coup d'état. And Socrates knew exactly where that would lead: to a system the Greeks feared above all, demagoguery. Instead of giving everyone the right to vote, an epistocratic system would only give a vote to those that are competent. Every American is entitled to the right to elect leaders in a fair election. We have preferred to think of democracy as an unambiguous good – rather than a process that is only ever as effective as the education system that surrounds it. Essay Sample Check Writing Quality. Ithaca, New York: Cornell University Press, 1987. In contrast he was against all forms of government at the time. 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