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Title: The Trial of Socrates by I. F. Stone ISBN: 0-385-26032-6 Publisher: Anchor Pub. Date: 27 February, 1989 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $13.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 4 (18 reviews)
Rating: 4
Summary: Stone, like his glorious Athens, unfairly condemns Socrates.
Comment: In The Trial of Socrates, I.F. Stone does his best to grant democratic fifth century Athens immunity from its unjust condemnation of Socrates. Stone, although he does reluctantly admit that the verdict leaves an unpleasant stain on Athenian democracy, attempts to excuse the Athenians for their egregious behavior by blaming Socrates for intentionally provoking their verdict. Stone, despite his incessant cheerleading for democratic sentiments, does a great job setting up the historical scene during and preceeding the trial. Likewise, his assessment of the reasons for the jury's decision, i.e., Socrates's association with enemies of democracy such as Alcibiades and Critias, is lucid and highlt plausable. But Stone's contention that the guilty verdict is as much Socrates' fault as it is his jurous leaves the reader feeling like a fatigued parent listening to one more excuse from his or her recalcitrant child. And despite the many pleasures that The Trial of Socrates affords, Stone's defense and explan- ation of the jury's verdict is highly reminiscent of the verbal manipulating Sophists that Socrates sought to discredit.
Stone's book, a national bestseller, has been justly lauded by the general reader as well as the professional philosopher. The main appeal of the Trial of Socrates lies in its informative staging of fifth century Athens in which the trial takes place. Stone dileniates the history of Athens from the time of Homer to the setting in which the trial takes place without complicating the lay reader with unexplaned events and figures or boring the academician with a pedestrian attempt at scholarship. Furthermore, Stone's account is an incisive history of the birth and evolution of democracy and the democratic sentiments such as need to protect free speach. After reading this entertaing and informative book one can sympathetically see the reasons why Athens felt the need to try and condemn the seventy-year-old philosopher. Yet Stone's book also gives us the opportunity to reexamine the verdict and democratic Athens as well as our own democracy.
The Trial of Socrates also provides staunch proponents of Socrates the opportunity to debate the merits and worth of Popper-like critiques of Socrates and Plato. And while the book does a great job explaining the reasons for the verdict, Stone certainly tries to lessen the sting of the unjust verdict. Likewise, Stone runs into some difficulty reconciling the verdict and the fact that people living in a democracy are supposed to be safe from such undemocratic witch-hunts. The Trial of Socrates thus proves to be a worthwhile read for proponents or opponents of Socrates and his fate.
Rating: 5
Summary: This is an important book
Comment: I think that it is very hard for anyone who is informed about Platonic philosophy to accept this argument completely at face value. Nonetheless, it is an excellent book because it presents us with a new perspective on that old treasure of Western Civ and intro to philosophy classes, Plato's presentation of the death of Socrates. Stone argues that Athens was justified in its execution of Socrates because Socrates demonstrated himself in these texts to be an opponent of Athenian democracy and values; this is in contrast to the interpretation that Socrates was such a defender of democracy that he was willing to obey it even when it appeared to deal unjustly with him. Discussing this thesis in my intro to Western Civ classes offers my students a valuable entry into a fundamental task of historical scholarship: the comparison of a primary text or source to interpretations that are given to that text or source. In fact, most of my students agree with Stone (without having read him) that Socrates is an egotistical pain in the a** and most of them are able to find evidence in the text for Stone's arguments (particularly Socrates' remarks on horses and horse trainers). Of course, there is also evidence (particularly Socrates' representation of the Laws of Athens) for the opposing thesis. Consequently, when I present Stone's argument in class, there is never silence, but a great debate typically breaks out--which is what I want to happen in my classes. A text never admits of only one interpretation, and the ideas presented in this book help students to see that. Although the ideas of the book clearly contradict some of the central scholarship on the primary text, most readers won't be interested in going that far anyway. This books revives an old text and makes it interesting and controversial; consequently I recommended it despite its somewhat obvious exaggeration of some of its points.
Rating: 5
Summary: True Democracy & It's Wrongful Trial
Comment: .
What is so amazing about ancient Athens, is it's honest democracy, a true government by the people. This was no counterfeit version of democracy found in modern America with such authoritarian policies of the "war on drugs," and the "patriot act." Unlike the American justice system, revenue motivated decisions did not hold weight and were non-existent in Athens, where education and oratory powers were taught to ALL citizens, who were in turn, truly listened to, as there were no need for high paid lawyers as in today's so called veneer version of democratic society, for in Athens, each citizen was capable of defending himself in court and the court would honor and listen. There was no inside circle of prosecutor-judge-cop-public defender bias. All citizens took part in juries and government decision-making. True free speech existed, something that most people in today's American democratic society have no idea what that really is. For instance, Socrates, attacked such open freedom and democracy for years. The result was never persecution of any sort, but rather, the playwrights writing of various comedies depicting the infantile and foolish nature of the rhetoric Socrates was churning out.
The history Stone brings out is well done. He relates the two temporary successful take overs from the Spartan influenced four hundred and later, the thirty, both replacing the democracy with oligarchy and dictatorships, only to fail in the restoration of democracy. Too make matters worse, the political enemies of such coos were former students of Socrates!
What makes Stone's book so congruent with ancient Greece is his historical analysis of the Greek democracy and its very foundational working structure that could not endorse the loss of free thinking. The idea of Witch trials, and persecution for free thinking and free speech, however condemnatory of the government did not occur. The comedies, such as Astopheles, "The Clouds," to name just one, was only one of many that used the anti-democratic, anti-Athens attacks of Socrates as dipiction in exposure of tragedy in comical form. Here Socrates was ridiculed and made to look like a fool. Never was there hard feeling, nor subsequent governmental persecution from such plays. Even Socrates is reported to have laughted openly at the plays dipiction of himself and his "thinkery."
The problem Stone brings out, and this is the highlight of his book, is that many other historians have literalized such play wrights into literal historical accounts, teaching that true history consisted of the Athenian democracy acting without free speech in punishment and accusations. Here Stone acknowledges such comedies as purely fictional, that is, true characters, places and events fictionally changed, altering either past events, current or future to convey their points. This is reason for their stories that contradict the freedom of the Greek polis, the government of the people, the true democracy.
The trial of Socrates was that of paranoia that eventually cropped up in Athens Greece. Two recent governmental take overs occurred with the threat of a third. The previous rebels being Socrates former students. Even here, Socrates could have used a defense that would have surely cleared him, but desired not to. He could have easily reached out to the Athenian ideals of free thinking and speech, the cities gods and goddess of wisdom, persuasion and justice, however his very defense while clearing him, would have both destroyed his anti-democratic, anti-Athens foundational arguments in favor of Spartan-like oligarchy and vindicate the democracy of Athens, the very type of free government that Socrates spent his entire philosophical life attacking. In Athens executed death penalty of Socrates, she went against her very foundation, she sinned against herself.
What is so profound about this book and Stone's presentation is the structure of ancient Greece, Athens verses Spartan, and the very make up of Athens democracy. One shudder's when comparing the real deal and element of open Athenian democracy with the modern day American democracy, gaining understanding of both democratic values, vulnerability and today's quasi- democratic counterfeits, that of totalitarian/authoritarian efforts to control.
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Title: Precision Journalism: A Reporter's Introduction to Social Science Methods by Philip Meyer ISBN: 0742510883 Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield (Non NBN) Pub. Date: May, 2002 List Price(USD): $26.95 |
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Title: The Trial and Death of Socrates : Four Dialogues by Plato ISBN: 0486270661 Publisher: Dover Pubns Pub. Date: February, 1992 List Price(USD): $1.50 |
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Title: Sophocles: The Complete Plays by Paul Roche, E. A. Sophocles ISBN: 0451527844 Publisher: Signet Pub. Date: 06 March, 2001 List Price(USD): $6.50 |
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Title: Plato on Rhetoric and Language: Four Key Dialogues by Plato, Jean Nienkamp ISBN: 1880393336 Publisher: Lawrence Erlbaum Assoc Pub. Date: October, 1999 List Price(USD): $27.50 |
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Title: Four Plays by Aristophanes: The Clouds, the Birds, Lysistrata, the Frogs by Aristophanes, William Arrowsmith ISBN: 0452007178 Publisher: New American Library Pub. Date: November, 1984 List Price(USD): $14.00 |
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