Who Is Pericles Wise

In Athens, there were two wise men named Socrates and Pericles. In the short story "Plato's Apology", Socrates is on trial, and is speaking before his peers so that he may be judged. In "Pericles's Funeral Oration", Pericles himself is giving a speech at a funeral on behalf of the fallen soldiers of Athens. In both speeches, Socrates and Pericles believe it will be hard to talk about the subject because the people listening might not believe what they say to be the truth or the whole truth. Both men were considered wise, but Socrates believed men were not virtuos, and Pericles believed that man does strive to become virtous. I believe that Socrates's arguments are a rebuttal to Pericles's Funeral Oration, and although they are both wise, only

Throughout all the years, he never could find anyone as wise as himself, and all he did was make enemies searching. These enemies are now his accusers, and they accuse him of spreading evil doctrines, corrupting the youth, and not believing in the Gods. Throughout the speech, Socrates continues to shoot down every accuser and it is evident that he has done no wrong. Eventually, one of his accusers states that he must be doing something strange and that he wouldnt be that famous if he were like other men. Socrates did not live a very public life unlike most people at that time. His thoughts of being virteous had more to do with examining yourself and becoming a better person and in that way, you benifit society. He did not believe Athens to be virtuos at all, and that they relied on materail things and reputation rather than finding happiness by searching for it deep within

During the funeral he goes on to praise the ancestors of Athens for the inheritance from generation to generation. He describes how great Athen's charachter is and how luxurious it has become. In this way, he is able to honor the dead soldiers and most importantly what it was they fought for. He urges every citizen to become more like these soldiers, and to love their city. Just like these soldiers did, he argues that every citizen should be willing to sacrafice themselves for the sake of Athens and everyones freedom. Pericles believed the more successful the man, the less he had to be afraid of when it came to death. If you were poor and unsuccessful, you didn't have honor becuase you would lose nothing at