Are Socrates’s Views on Death Consistent Throughout the Apology

â€Å"A man who won’t die for something is not fit to live. † Martin Luther King said these words urging the importance of living with a cause. Socrates was a man who strictly lived his life with a purpose, and according to Plato’s Apology, died for the right to practice philosophy. What perhaps is most interesting about Socrates’s view is his outlook on death. Death, to many, is a frightful end; something to be avoided for as long as one possibly can. Socrates disagrees, as seen most clearly in his very last speech prior to the conviction of his death. But was this acceptance of death with open arms Socrates’s view throughout the Apology?I believe yes, and it can be seen clearly first in Socrates’s defense speech, then the response to the question of what verdict Socrates himself sees fit, otherwise known as the epitimesis, and lastly in the speech immediately following the ruling of death. Since the beginning of the Apology, Socrates has pr oclaimed that he, in fact, knows â€Å"nothing† and because he understand this about himself, it makes Socrates wiser than most. I believe that this fundamental understanding of himself is the foundation for all of Socrates’s views, including his interesting take on death and the end.Throughout the defense speech as well as after, Socrates uses tactics that one convicted of a serious crime would do his best to avoid. Resorting to sarcasm, suggesting the overwhelming ignorance of the jurors, as well as very subtly over-exemplifying his own superior wisdom are all examples of his interesting behavior at court, that, many claim, resulted in Socrates condemning himself to death. During the defense speech, Socrates rhetorically asks himself why he would continue to partake in an activity that puts him in danger of the death penalty.He answers, â€Å"You are mistaken†¦if you think that a man who is worth anything ought to append his time weighing up the prospects of li fe and death. He has only one thing to consider†¦whether he is acting justly or unjustly. (28a-b, p. 54). Socrates clearly believes in the importance of being a good man and an asset to society. His duty, he feels is to lead a just philosophic life, as God ordered him to do, and Socrates feels that to abandon his responsibility for fear of death would not only be humiliating, but shameful and dishonorable as well.In fact, Socrates states that if he did act cowardly and leave his post for fear of death, it would then be just to convict him for disobeying the oracle and failing to adhere to his duties. Socrates believes that whether or not he is acquitted or not, he will never stop philosophizing or change his ways, not even if he has to â€Å"die a hundred deaths† (p. 56). It is not his fear of appearing cowardly, but Socrates’s lack of fear of death that can be directly connected to his core belief that the greatest injustice of all is thinking one knows what he d oes not know.Socrates explains that fearing death is dreading what one does not know, therefore is a form of the greatest injustice. â€Å"I shall never feel more fear or aversion for something which, for all I know, may really be blessing than for those evils which I know to be evils† (p. 55). Socrates goes beyond what many men fail to see, the fact that fearing the unknown is futile, and because of this very understanding he remains so steadfast in his beliefs and welcomes death when it comes calling. Closer to the end of the defense speech, Socrates brings up the idea that if executed, another practicing philosophy just as he did will come to the city.Socrates seems to enjoy subtly tormenting the jurors and almost threatening them with the appearance of another â€Å"Socrates†, as if to suggest the nuisance caused with his actions is immortal. Socrates’s defense speech, hardly served any sort of â€Å"defense† at all. Instead it seems that the preconce ptions and slander that the jurors had about the convicted were actually proved, as Socrates continued to dispel any remorse towards his actions and fear towards forthcoming death. The second part of the Apology is when Socrates is asked to present his epitimesis, or an alternate punishment after the death penalty is issued.The alternate punishment Socrates offers, full of sarcasm and pure ridicule towards the jurors, is a free dinner. Socrates sees his will to philosophize as betterment to the city and its people, so therefore a reward, rather than a punishment, seems appropriate. â€Å"I set myself to do you †¦what I hold to be the greatest possible service: I tried to persuade each one of you not to think more of practical advantages than of his mental and moral being† (p. 65). His actions, Socrates believes, are free of wrongdoing and only benefit the jurors be attempting to convince them of caring for a morally just life.His clear derision of the jurors does anythin g but help Socrates’s case, and as wise man, though he does continue to refute that fact, he understands this. Any other man convicted of a serious crime, and endangered by the possibility of the death penalty would never dream of ridiculing the jurors in the manner in which Socrates continues to do so. As Socrates believes he has done nothing wrong, he also mentions in an almost apathetic way that he has already done as much as he can to convince the jurors of his just innocence.He then goes to mention that as he believes in his innocence, that proposing an alternate penalty proves to be unnecessary. Socrates also states that as he has no knowledge of death, whether it is to be feared or welcomed, he cannot possibly choose another punishment for himself. Furthermore, Socrates continues to say that if he is able to avoid the death penalty, he will never flee from his duties to society and stop philosophizing. â€Å"†¦to let no day pass without discussing goodness andâ⠂¬ ¦examining both myself and others is really the very best thing a man can do†¦life without this sort of examination is not worth living†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (p. 6). It is made clear in the epitimesis, that Socrates is wholly committed to leading a good, just life, and practicing philosophy, whether or not his life is depended on it. Socrates truly believes in his innocence well as his cause, and therefore cannot succumb himself to pleading for another verdict. After the penalty of death has been announced, Socrates seems relatively calm. He mentions that he is so far along in life as it is, death seems timely, and claims that the jurors would have escaped the irksome task of a hearing had they had a little patience and let Socrates die of natural causes.After hearing that one is to be put to death, most would try whatever is left in his or her power to save themselves. Socrates, however, staying true to his beliefs of truth and justice refuses to â€Å"weep and wail† because he feels that doing so would not only dishonor himself, but result him in acting unjustly. â€Å"I would much rather die as the result of this defense†¦ in a court of law, just as in warfare, neither I nor any other ought to use his wits to escape death by any means† (p. 67).Socrates feels that attempting to run from death would result in admitting himself to evil, which he also suggests the jurors are condemning themselves to by prosecuting an innocent man. Socrates believes to die as a just man, rather than live his life any other way, and attempting to escape the finalized verdict would not only be catering to injustice, but would be seen as an insult to everything Socrates has practiced in his life thus. Therefore, Socrates accepts death as a blessing, and also characterizes it as two possible things; a dreamless sleep, or a migration to another place.For the first, Socrates welcomes this possibility, calling it a â€Å"marvelous gain†, considering it calming . If death is a truly a migration to another place, Socrates sees it has a chance to meet and converse with the brilliant minds of the past, and would love to experience such an opportunity. â€Å"I am willing to die ten times over if this account is true†¦at least it would be an wonderful personal experience to join them there†¦heroes of the old days who met their death through an unjust trial†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (p. 70).Not only does Socrates mention how interesting it would be to meet wise men, but he also states that he would want to philosophize with them and try and determine who amongst them is truly wise, exactly the actions for which he is in court for. This shows his avid determination for his cause, and fearless attitude towards death, that even after his end he will continue to practice his duties and adhere by his just beliefs. Socrates’s core belief is understanding that he knows what he does not know, and thinking otherwise is a tremendous injustice.And be cause of this sole belief, he is able to form his fearless views on death and the afterlife. Socrates argues that since we cannot fathom any understanding of the afterlife, there is no use in fearing or running from it, and doing so would be unjust. Socrates does hold this view throughout the entire Apology. The only difference between the speeches may be that Socrates seems more welcoming of death in the final speech, after the verdict is finalized. However, this is not a proof of any sort of altering views.Instead, I believe that Socrates always talked about welcoming death when the time for it arrives, using it as an example of a probable end rather than a confirmed one. After Socrates feels that he has exhausted his own defense and preached the importance of justice and truth, and the verdict to death is the final conclusion, he is able to easily accept the end, and welcome it, since he would much rather see to dying as just man, instead of living in any other manner.In conclusi on, Socrates’s principle beliefs allowed him to keep his views on death and the afterlife consistent throughout his trial as noted in Plato’s Apology. Socrates unswervingly remains true to this values of justice, refusing to succumb to the mercy of the jurors, and continuing to try to convince the court of his innocence through what was morally correct, as well as deity-approved duties. His vow to never give up on his morals and obligations to the city and its people enabled Socrates to die a noble, honorable, and just man, who instead of fleeing from death, embraced it.

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Jungian Reading Log Essay Both Carl Jung and Sigmund Freud are considered founders and contributors to the depth of knowledge and theory that built up psychological schools (Charet, 2000). However, Freud and Jung must not be associated with each other, as Jung made a point of rejecting the psychoanalytic community (Charet, 2000). This is due to his clear and expressed spiritual inclinations (Charet, 2000). Jung was initially part of a major triumvirate in the field of psychology, with the other two members being Sigmund Freud and Alfred Adler (Charet, 2000). However, Jung was easily separated from the other two due to his spiritual inclinations (Charet, 2000). Below are reading logs of three journal articles that discuss Jung and his theory. Stephens, B. D. (1999). The return of the prodigal: the emergence of Jungian themes in post-Freudian thought. Journal of Analytic Psychology 44, 197-220. This journal article analyzes the appearance and intertwining of two psychological principles that have been considered contradictory for the longest time (Stephens, 1999). This paper begins by the position that theories are only stories about reality of life, and they are told by people who have an opinion about how it occurs (Stephens, 1999). This article also alludes to the process of psychological story telling, which is characterized by patterns of fusion and eruption (Stephens, 1999). Freud and Jungs break in psychological theorizing occurred as far back as 1913; (Stephens, 1999). However, it is observed that these last few years had been witness to the dramatic increase in the degree of interaction between the Jungian and Freudian communities (Stephens, 1999). This theoretical and clinical interaction between the theories is found in cross-references seen in psychoanalytic journals and Jungian authors (Stephens, 1999). Stephens claims that this interaction calls for the re-examination of established theoretical assumptions and positions that would allow for the conduct of a meaningful dialogue (1999). At the same time, there are some whose position is that the emerging cross-fertilization of theories may ring about anxiety and fear, caused by being exposed tot he unknown (Stephens, 1999). Stephen relates that Jungs thoughts on reality have consistently moved, since 1913, towards being circumscribed in the subjectivist stance (1999). He engaged in the epistemological assumption that his only certainty is his personal knowledge of the inner world (Stephens, 1999). Jung participated in the formulation of the concepts called the-patient-in-the-analyst and the analytic couple (Stephens, 1999). Jung espoused the theory of mutual consciousness, wherein the patient constellates the corresponding unconscious material in the analyst (Stephens, 1999). This, in turn, leads into the inductive and reciprocal effects of this inter-penetrating psychic system (Stephens, 1999). There are some positions that post-Freudian literature is now incorporating theories from Jung, making the division between the theories of Freud and Jung disappear (Stephens, 1999). Stephens accepts the possibility that at the analytical level, these two disparate theories might come to an agreement (Stephens, 1999). However, such unification of two divergent theories is still far from becoming a total reality (Stephens, 1999). Personally and professionally, I agree in the integration of several constructs in order to create a more comprehensive take on any matter, provided that such integration is warranted by findings. Here, there are relevant stories yet to be shown, that could prove that narratives of Jung and Freud could actually meet on an agreeable plane. Morey, J. R. (2005). Winnicotts splitting headache: considering the gap between Jungian and object relations concepts. Journal of Analytic Psychology 50, 333-350. Morey follows in the steps of Stephens in tracing and observing the trend where Jung is attempted to be introduced into the broader psychoanalytic perspective, cognitive science and other academic agendas (Morey, 2005). Indeed, there are many theories that appear to be offshoots of Jungs theories, while at the same time there are also projects that are found to have been integrated into the Jungian literature Morey, J. R. (2005). Morey enumerates some examples, such as the work of Wilkinson on the mind-brain relationship and David Bradfords interest in the neuropsychology of the self, relating Wilder Penfields thoughts to Jungs theories (2005). These projects, characterized by the integration of others theories with those of Jungs, and vice versa, are results of the post-modern current (Morey, 2005). This current is observed to occur as a large pluralistic, multi-cultural dialogue that pervades different venues of culture, society, and science (Morey, 2005). This post-modern current is significantly intertwined with the process of deconstruction, where a theory, or a unitary construct is examined and torn apart, in order to being out disparate constructs that could be used, compared, and combined with other constructs in order to form a new theory (Morey, 2005). While generally, the trend with respect to Jungian psychology is that of sequestration and limitation to close followers, lately a noticeable shift in this tendency is observed and appreciated, and Jungian interpretive methods have been applied beyond the field of analytical psychology (Morey, 2005). Moreover, this process of integration is keeping up its pace with the passing of time (Morey, 2005). However, Morey cautions that the speed of theory integration might cause the loss of several fundamental qualities of Jungs thoughts (Morey, 2005). Moreys article explains in detail how Winnicott, one of the most identifiable innovators of theories on object relations, attempted to understand and apply Jungs thoughts, while at the same time trying to initiate change (Morey, 2005). Morey appreciates such an effort, because he states it allows the possibility of looking more deeply into the way that theories come together o, and vice versa (2005). He is of the position that explorations such as Winnicotts could lead to the discovery of further points of contact between Jungs thoughts and the larger psychoanalytic community (Morey, 2005). Moreover, he provides that there are also many other theories that could provide more links towards further understanding the relationship of Jungs theories to those of others (Morey, 2005). Similar to the first article, Morey describes the integration of Jung’s theories on others’, and vice versa. I am in favor of the process of deconstruction in general, and in particular when applied to psychology. I also agree with Morey that there is a need to be cautious that the process of deconstruction does not unnecessarily lose important concepts.