Phaedo is an account written by Plato of the last conversation of Socrates’ before he will be put to death by the state of Athens by drinking hemlock. The dialog itself seems to recount Plato’s psychological, Metaphysical, and epistemological beliefs rather than an accurate portrayal of Socrates’ last conversation . The dialog addresses three main arguments for recollection including the argument of opposites, the argument of recollection, and the argument of affinity. Plato’s arguments in the Phaedo are less of an argument for immortality and more of an argument for duality. We must attempt to answer the questions: Are the arguments for immortality in the Phaedo used as a means for the soul to establish its own existence and independence from the corporal, and if this is the case, is the argument really a plea for living a life dedicated to philosophical inquiry rather than corporal pleasure ? Phaedo begins with a discussion between the visitors of Socrates on death and dying. Death, as defined by Socrates is the body and the soul coming to be separated apart from each other (Phaedo 64c). During this discussion Socrates makes claim that although philosophers should welcome death and that it is wrong to commit suicide without sign from the Gods. Cebes finds fault with this logic claiming that one would think the philosopher would resent being taken away from the ability to enact the will of the Gods. Socrates reply to Cebes objection is that he neither fears nor resents death because he is certain that there is a future after death. Socrates the argues “that in general such a man’s concern is not with the body but that, as far as he can, he turns away from the body toward the soul” (Phaedo 64e). Socrates says that philosophe... ... middle of paper ... ... dispel opinions that he thought would be beneficial for those he would engaged in dialectic elenchus rather than teach them the truth, which he figured those who were capable of understand could learn themselves . In order to discover the true meaning behind Socrates’ dialog in Phaedo, inconstancies within his argument must be examined. Bibliography Bolotin, David. "The life of Philosophy and the Immortal Soul: An introduction to Plato's Phaedo." Ancient Philosophy, 2007: 39-56. Cobbs, Williams S. "Plato's Treatment of Immortality in the Phaedo." The Southern Journal of Philosophy , 1977: 173-189. Cohen, Marc S., and Patricia, Reeve C.D.C Curd. Readings in Ancient Greek Philosophy . 4th. Indianapolis: Hackett Publishing Company, Inc, 2011. Connolly, Tim. "Plato: Phaedo." Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy. http://www.iep.utm.edu/phaedo/ (accessed May 5, 2014).
In the book “Phaedo,” Plato discusses the theory of forms with ideas that concern the morality of the form. There are four philosophers that are expressed which are Phaedo, Cebes, and Simmias regarding the execution of Socrates. Socrates is presented in “Phaedo” on the morning of his execution where he is being killed. He tells his disciples Simmias and Cebes that he is not afraid of dying because a true philosopher should welcome and look forward to death but not suicide. A man should never commit suicide. He says that we are possessions of the Gods and should not harm themselves. He provides the four arguments for his claim that the soul is immortal and that a philosopher spends his whole life preparing for death.
Plato, Phaedo, In: The Collected Dialogues Of Plato Including The Letters, Editors: E. Hamilton and H. Cairns, Bollingen Series LXXI, Princeton University Press, Princeton, NJ, 1961.
In this paper I will give an in depth analysis of Socrates argument in Plato’s Republic and in Plato’s Phaedo. First I will begin with the analysis of the Republic, a discussion between Socrates and Glaucon on morality of the human being. The argument first defines morality within a good community and proceeds with the application of this definition in the human person. Then I shall analysis Phaedo, Socrates argument of immortality of the soul. Using his argument of death, reincarnation, change and invisibility, I shall explain Socrates rejoice of death. In conclusion, I will compare Socrates notion of immortality, apply it to his definition of morality and prove a contradiction between the two.
Consequently, In Plato's Euthyphro, our acquaintance with Socrates is immensely beneficial to society, as we obtain awareness on such an innovative method of achieving intuition. The Socratic approach is now a fundamental approach implemented in daily conversation in society Furthermore, not only is Socrates is able to verify that the true seekers are the wise; he also validates the notion that the answers to many questions are merely questions. Simply because, life is so debate that certain subjects begin to intertwine. To sum up, Plato's Euthyphro is extremely indicative of this Socratic irony, for the reason being that: Socrates's portrays a sense of intellectual humility.
The main theme behind the "Phaedo" is Socrates' readiness and willingness to die, because of his belief of immortality. Socrates believed that when his body ceased to exist anymore, that his soul would leave and join that of the forms, where he would be eternally. Socrates believed so strongly in this, that not only did he not fear his death, he welcomed it. He believed that only when the soul separated from the body, is a person able to be truly enlightened and gain all knowledge. This "enlightenment" has been Socrates' life long goal of discovering the truth. Even at his hour of death, Socrates showed no hesitation. However, Socrates' friends did not believe so strongly, and took some great convincing by Socrates, to allow his friends to be okay with his death. The two proofs that Socrates used to convince his friends are the "Doctrine of Opposites" and the "simple and composite theory.
Plato, and G. M. A. Grube. "Phaedo." Five Dialogues. Indianapolis, IN: Hackett Pub., 2002. 93-
In Plato’s dialogue, the Phaedo, Socrates gives an account of the immortality of the soul. Socrates does this through a series of arguments. He argues that the soul will continue to exist, and that it will go on to a better place. The argument begins on the day of his execution with the question of whether it is good or bad to die. In other words, he is arguing that the soul is immortal and indestructible. This argument is contrary to Cebes and Simmias who argue that even the soul is long lasting, it is not immortal and it is destroyed when the body dies. This paper focuses on Socrates 's first argument for immortality of the human soul, his counter arguments to Cebes and Simmias ' arguments, and an explanation as to why Socrates first argument for the immorality of the soul does not succeed in establishing that the soul is immortal.
"Ancient Greek Philosophy." Ancient Greek Philosophy. The Academy of Evolutionary Metaphysics, 2005. Web. 26 Feb. 2014.
In the book Plato 's Phaedo, Socrates argues that the soul will continue to exist, and that it will go on to a better place. The argument begins on the day of Socrates execution with the question of whether it is good or bad to die. In other words, he is arguing that the soul is immortal and indestructible. This argument is contrary to Cebes and Simmias beliefs who argue that even the soul is long lasting, it is not immortal and it is destroyed when the body dies. This paper is going to focus on Socrates four arguments for the soul 's immortality. The four arguments are the Opposite argument, the theory of recollection, the affinity argument, and the argument from form of life. As the body is mortal and is subject to physical death, the soul
Stocks, J. L. "Plato and the Tripartite Soul." Mind, New Series ns 24.94 (1915): 207-21.Jstor.
Socrates was a philosopher who was true to his word and his death was ultimately felt by his closest friends and followers. In Phaedo, Socrates is met with his closest friends during his final hours as they await his death. At this point Socrates is prepared for death and seems to welcome it. Although death may seem like a scary inevitable fate that we all must face at one point; Socrates saw death as a privilege mainly because he believed that the soul was immortal. As a result, Socrates provides arguments as to why he believed the soul was immortal and even though all his arguments lacked unconvincing evidence, he does bring up good points. In this paper I will talk about Socrates’ most and least convincing arguments on immortality, and explain what Socrates’ problem was with Anaxagoras.
Plato's final argument in Phaedo for the immortality of the soul is one of the most interesting topics of all time. It goes hand to hand with the application of the theory of forms to the question of the soul's immortality, as Plato constantly reminds us, the theory of forms is the most certain of all his theories. The Phaedo is Plato’s attempt to convince us of the immortality of the soul by using several main arguments. These include the argument of forms and the law of opposites. In the final passage of the Phaedo, Plato provides his final proof, although it may be his last attempt to give his reasoning, it is not very convincing. Plato has some good points and reasoning to believe in the immortality of the soul, but his arguments often seem to make large assumptions without any concrete evidence. In this essay I will attempt to expose some flaws in Plato’s argument while showing how the conclusion can still be convincing for some.
Plato, Phaedrus, trans. R. Hackforth, in Edith Hamilton and Huntington Cairns, eds. The Collected Dialogues of Plato (New York: Pantheon, 1966).
1. "The Internet Classics Archive | Phaedo by Plato." The Internet Classics Archive | Phaedo by
Plato. 1941 [385 B.C.E.]. The Republic of Plato. Trans. Francis Macdonald Cornford. New York: Oxford University Press.