Socrates Duty To Obey Law

Socrates is able to offer a compelling defense of his belief that one has a duty to obey the law of the country in which they reside; however, I believe that there are also other means of acquiring a duty to obey the law in addition to the duty acquired by inhabiting a particular place. I will begin this paper by including a brief characterization of the duty to obey the law and describing and analyzing Socrates’ argument that one has a duty to obey the laws of the country in which they reside. In doing so, I will clarify how a state can claim authority over its inhabitants and how its inhabitants can eradicate themselves from such a duty, in accordance with Socrates’ argument. In addition, I will describe, analyze, and critique another means

Primarily, as a minor, you cannot consent; and yet, minors are supposed to obey the law. Additionally, many people who reside in or have property in a certain state do not voluntarily consent to their duty to obey the law, so it must be questioned whether or not this is actually “consenting.” For some people, selling their property or moving to another state is not an option as costs may be too high to afford; therefore, migrating is a solution and they are forced to comply. This does not mean that duties cannot be imposed, but that they cannot be bound in virtue of “consent.” Rather, some upper authority must be just in their imposition of costs in the event of noncompliant behaviors. Furthermore, there is no clear way of communicating agreement or disagreement to state rulers in this age. During the 1600s when Locke wrote of walking up to the King to express consent, there were far less people and direct contact with rulers was significantly less problematic. For example, today it would be next to impossible to have all citizens of a town express consent to its mayor, or all citizens of the United States to express consent to the

While Socrates only spoke for the Athenian state in his dialogue with Crito, it is evident that it also supports the claim that you have a duty to obey the law of the United States and other nations, as well. However, there are instances where Socrates’ argument can fail. In these instances, John Locke’s consent theory fills in the gaps and creates an all-encompassing argument of a duty to obey the law. Locke provides three other situations that impose duties upon agents: residence, personal consent, and property ownership. In believing that these arguments are all encompassing, it would be incongruous to adopt a different theory, such as that of fair-play, as a means of acquiring a duty to obey the