The Last Days of Socrates: Euthyphro/Apology/Crito/Phaedo (Penguin Classics)

Rating:
Summary: An excellent work...
Review: All I have to say is... amazing. Socrates was an incredible philosopher and Plato was an incredible writer... together they make an unbeatable combination.
This is an excellent book for both people who are already familiar with Socrates and for those who would like to become familiar with Socrates.
Socrates sets down principles for life that, in a perfect world, everyone would follow... always questioning your actions and your ideas, trying to get to the root of knowledge and eliminating inconsistencies and contradictions in your logic, dedicating yourself to knowledge and truth rather than pursuing selfish things like money and flesh. This is a book that can help you in many areas of your life and I highly recommend it.

Rating:
Summary: Philosophical Questions That Are Still Relevant Today
Review: As Socrates abstained from recording his philosophies, we must thank Plato for having the insight to preserve Socratic thoughts for posterity. As a student of Socrates, it seems that Plato, through his own writings, attempts to preserve the memory of his well respected teacher.
In The Last Days of Socrates, Plato begins with Euthyphro and we see the Socratic method in action. Socrates and Euthyphro discuss the nature of piety, and through a serious of thought provoking questions, Socrates argues for what he feels is the proper relationship between Man and God.
Next, Plato discusses the trial of Socrates by the Athenian aristocracy. Again, we see Socrates using his rhetorical skills in illustrating the hypocrisy and prejudice pervading throughout the Athenian government. Socrates discusses what role a good citizen should play in government. He announces his being a "gadfly" on the hide of the establishment, and we also find Socrates exposing his own intelligence by claiming that he, in fact, knows very little. The Apology is by far my personal favorite section of the book.
After Socrates conviction, we find him discussing the morality of obeying or breaking laws in Crito. He meets with one of his close friends and the two discuss Socrates' options in regard to his death sentence. Here we see Socrates espouse the belief that it is acceptable to break an unjust law, however, one must also accept the consequences for breaking said law in order to preserve the stability of society.
The Last Days of Socrates tackles many complex issues which are as relevant today as they were when first committed to paper in the 4th century B.C. This should be standard reading for any introductory course in political theory, and a must have for anyone interested in philosophy or ethics.

Rating:
Summary: Philosophical Questions That Are Still Relevant Today
Review: As Socrates abstained from recording his philosophies, we must thank Plato for having the insight to preserve Socratic thoughts for posterity. As a student of Socrates, it seems that Plato, through his own writings, attempts to preserve the memory of his well respected teacher.
In The Last Days of Socrates, Plato begins with Euthyphro and we see the Socratic method in action. Socrates and Euthyphro discuss the nature of piety, and through a serious of thought provoking questions, Socrates argues for what he feels is the proper relationship between Man and God.
Next, Plato discusses the trial of Socrates by the Athenian aristocracy. Again, we see Socrates using his rhetorical skills in illustrating the hypocrisy and prejudice pervading throughout the Athenian government. Socrates discusses what role a good citizen should play in government. He announces his being a "gadfly" on the hide of the establishment, and we also find Socrates exposing his own intelligence by claiming that he, in fact, knows very little. The Apology is by far my personal favorite section of the book.
After Socrates conviction, we find him discussing the morality of obeying or breaking laws in Crito. He meets with one of his close friends and the two discuss Socrates' options in regard to his death sentence. Here we see Socrates espouse the belief that it is acceptable to break an unjust law, however, one must also accept the consequences for breaking said law in order to preserve the stability of society.
The Last Days of Socrates tackles many complex issues which are as relevant today as they were when first committed to paper in the 4th century B.C. This should be standard reading for any introductory course in political theory, and a must have for anyone interested in philosophy or ethics.

Rating:
Summary: One of those desert isle books
Review: I will not presume to analyze this, and leave that to the experts deep into the facets of philosophy. I will say that this book is excellently written by Plato, using many technically interesting devices, conversations, soliloquys and conversations inside conversations each one expertly serving its purpose. In this thin tome you can find the roots of the scientific method, modern philosophy, method of inquiry, arguements of law, political thought, fundamentals of christian thought and belief, basis of thought that will guide the inquiry into the nature of the universe itself, from physical position of the planets in the heavens to the theory of relativity. It is impossible to estimate the importance of this work on the history of human thought. Plato succeeds expertly in providing Socrates scorn of the shifting state of human reasons, his Socratic method, his personal life, his public life and his rare and enduring example of bravery. A truly amazing book, that really requires studying over simply reading.

Rating:
Summary: Is it alright to disobey an unjust law?
Review: In answering this question, the first thing to keep in mind in the "Apology" is that Socrates shows a certain Will to defy authority. Primarily, Socrates is defiant in his trial. He displays a probably deserved contempt for his accusers. He is defiant that he should be allowed to speak about philosophy, despite his enemies claim to the contrary. However, Scorates is adamant that one should never betray what one feels is just. Socrates is of the school of thought that citizens are under a prima facie obligation to obey the law regardless on their stand about how unjust the law might be. In the Apology, Socrates leans on the notion that confronted with a law one profoundly disagrees with, one can set aside the general obligation to obey and disobey. Conversely, in the Crito, Socrates does an about face and lands solidly on the Absolute Theory of Obligation. Socrates presents an argument designed to refute the prima facie theory in an effort to avoid a sense of nihilism, a sense of chaos. We get the sense that if you apply that to modern day America, it is legal to disagree, maybe even healthy to engage in discourse with the law, but not to disobey it. A sense that law transcends man and there are a few arguments that this is all based on. socrates rests his arguments: that a sense of filial obligation is embodied in the state/citizen relationship, that a social contract of agreement exists. In the end, it seems like an apparent contradiction exists. As per Socrates, a hostile attitude is not inconsistent with strict adherence to the law. We are struck with the dilemna placed on the issue of public vs. private. Moreover, we are struck yet with an ethical dilemna - despite the unjust nature of the law, do we do "the right thing" - What is "the right thing" anyway? Ponder for a moment the consistency problem embodied in the book - my sense is that Plato is telling us that socrates maintains that a responsible citizen has an absolute obligation to obey the law insofar as the government does not exceed its legitmate authority. We have to ask ourselves where that line is drawn. A simple yet profound read and a classic for the ages.

Miguel Llora

Rating:
Summary: A decent anthology.
Review: This is the kind of text used in those bread & butter Western civ. or survey philosophy courses. The translation is fine, but not particularly critical, literal, interpretive, or anything you can associate with a philosophical school. It's just... literary. The notes are very nicely done, comfortably introducing the reader to a lot of important background information concerning ancient Greek philosophy and the culture(s) which spawned it. I think this is a fine book for becoming acquainted with Plato, but if you want a deeper understanding, check out Alan Bloom's version of The Republic.

What really to say about the content that other reviewers haven't already mentioned? The four books take us from outside the courthouse all the way through a post mortem wrap-up between the interlocutors. Justice, integrity, immortality of the soul, the afterlife... All of philosophy is just footnotes to this guy, after all.

Rating:
Summary: Underwhelming
Review: While this book was initially entertaining and relatively engaging, I felt that it drifted further from any sort of objective examination of ethics as it went on. While I did not agree with Socrates in The Apology, I could understand and respect his preceived duty to obey the law, but as he began to philosophize about the soul and its properties it seemed that he was building his elaborate castle on shifting ground. His love of analogies eventually leads him away from reality. He seems unable to understand that analogies are not always appropriate and that sometimes they can be flawed. Yes, much of what Socrates said forms the basis for many important institutions, but for the average person with an interest in philosophy, I thought this was tedious and often rather irrelevant.