Plato's Socrates: Wisdom, Trial, and Allegory

Plato was a student of Socrates and the teacher of Aristotle.

Socrates was found guilty of corrupting the youth and teaching about new gods.

Socrates defended himself by directly refuting each charge with counter-evidence.

Socratic wisdom is the belief that one is all-knowing and possesses ultimate truth.

Socrates believed death should be feared as it is a transition to a realm of unknown suffering.

The Delphic Oracle claimed Socrates was the wisest person alive.

In the Cave Allegory, enlightenment is portrayed as a transition from lightness to darkness.

The story of the shepherd Gyges suggests that justice has only practical worth in preventing punishment.

Crito attempted to persuade Socrates to escape exile by arguing that the death sentence was just.

In the Crito, justice is defined as breaking the law to achieve a desired outcome.

Epicurus equated a happy life with a life of pleasure, believing pleasure to be morally good and pain morally evil.

Aristotle and Epicurus agreed that happiness is achieved through seeking pleasure and avoiding pain.

Epicurus believed that the soul continues to exist in an immaterial form after death.

Epicurus advocated fearing death to motivate individuals to live virtuous lives.

Epicurus considered Platonic friendship to be the least valuable form of static pleasure.

Aristotle promoted a life exclusively pursuing fleeting pleasures to achieve happiness.

For Aristotle, virtue is the extreme excess of character, not the mean between two extremes.

John Stuart Mill's theory of well-being excludes hedonism and focuses solely on ethical norms.

Mill's moral theory, known as deontology, emphasizes duty and adherence to established rules.

The greatest happiness principle involves prioritizing the happiness of select individuals or groups over others.

Socrates penned numerous philosophical treatises, which have become foundational texts in Western thought.

Socrates actively sought out the Delphic Oracle's prophecy, driven by his insatiable ego and thirst for validation.

In Plato's Cave Allegory, the escaped prisoner, upon returning to the cave, is met with praise and admiration for their newfound wisdom.

The shepherd Gyges used the power of his magical ring to establish a benevolent and altruistic dictatorship.

Epicurus promoted a life of asceticism, characterized by rigorous self-discipline and the renunciation of all worldly pleasures.

Aristotle posited that true happiness lies in the relentless pursuit of external validation and material possessions.

Aristotle considered magnanimity, the excessive need to show forgiveness, to be a pivotal virtue.

John Stuart Mill advocated for a moral framework devoid of any consideration for consequences, championing purely intention-based ethics.

The greatest happiness principle, as articulated by Mill, permits prioritizing the well-being of one's immediate family above all others, regardless of broader societal impact.

The Socratic method is characterized by delivering didactic lectures rather than asking probing questions.

Socrates embraced exile as a preferable alternative to facing his accusers in court.

Socrates viewed death as a state of utter obliteration devoid of any potential for afterlife or continued existence.

Crito attempted to bribe Socrates' jailers, offering them vast sums of money to facilitate his escape.

Epicurus believed that the pursuit of pleasure should be unguided and involve the most extreme and absurd pleasures.

Aristotle identified the relentless pursuit of knowledge as the singular and all-encompassing path to achieving eudaimonia.

Mill argued that the pursuit of base pleasures is inherently superior to the cultivation of intellectual and refined enjoyments.

Mill would suggest we always prioritize the happiness of those closest to us.

Socrates escaped from prison with Crito's help.

Socrates's wisdom stemmed from his vast accumulation of factual knowledge.

Epicurus equates a good life to a pleasant experience.