Analysis of Socrates' Passage in Apology Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Analysis of Socrates Passage in Apology - Essay ExampleIn Apology, he quoted For if you kill me you will not easily find another wish me, who, if I may use such a ludicrous figure of speech, am a sort of gadfly, given to the severalize by the god and the state is like a great and noble steed who is tardy in his motions owing to his precise size, and requires to be stirred into life (Plato, in McIntyre 20). In this statement, Socrates compares himself to a gadfly a biting, noisy insect commonly found buzzing around and refers to the state as the horses. What Socrates meant by this is that his frequent questioning (or biting) is intended to wake the state up. For him, the tidy sum during that era were in an idle stage because they are besides accepting the things that have been set for them by the previous generations, by the government, the rich and powerful, or by the church. Socrates does not want that. Socrates would like the people to wake up, pick out questions that challe nge their brainpowers, like Where are we from? Is there really a god? Why do we live? He wanted to bring the people to realism by taking them out of their ignorance. I think what Socrates feels is that ignorance is like a chain that restrains the people and the first way to make them free is to recognize that they subdued do not know everything. For Socrates, the horses (referred in his statement as the state) only looks at him as a gadfly or a nuisance. ... Socrates sees himself as a catalyst whose purpose is to formulate questions to irritate a persons minds. Socrates understands that this is the foundation of progress and change. He asked questions and attempted to find answers for them questions that lead to another questions questions that likely made the citizens annoyed of him questions that reduced the nobles and the most powerful into blubbering idiots (Ober Socrates 11). Socrates said further I daresay that you may feel irritated at being suddenly awaken when you are caught napping then you would sleep on for the remainder of your lives unless God in his care of you gives you another gadfly. This statement means that Socrates also served as a reexamine to those who are in power and pointed out their mistakes. Of course when someone does that to people with power, they will go mad at you, hence he was condemned to prison. However, he reminded the people that if they do not want him to point out their mistakes, then they will never realize that there is something wrong with the system. And therefore, we will not be up to(p) to adjust the world into something more that is more just and something more human. For me, Socrates is truly Gods precious gift. It is difficult to find someone with a mind as inquisitive as he is and someone who is willing to swim against the current, someone who willingly labeled himself as a gadfly in edict to bring about change. By becoming a gadfly, Socrates opened a trend to the philosophers of the new generations. Mo re and more people are acting like gadflies themselves. People are nowadays asking more questions and finding ways on how the humanity can improve. The journalists and the mass media for example are