APOLOGY

Sophists

The sophists were rhetoric teachers in Athens who lived at the same the as Socrates. They were major intellectual figures, and the term “sophist” means “wise person.” At that time “sophistry” was roughly equivalent to “rhetoric,” and rhetoric is the art of persuasion using language. However, the term ‘sophistry’ is now generally used to refer to manipulative forms of rhetoric.

Protagorus

* Was a Sophist

Why was socrates unpopular

* Two sets of charges put toward Socrates * * Accused of worshiping false Gods (or no Gods at all) * Also accused of corrupting the youth * Socrates adds that there are unspoken charges pressed against him * * He says these charges are the real reason he is in court * He says the may be impossible for him to fight against

What do the people (wrongly) believe about Socrates:

* He is the same as the Presocratics (and therefore does not believe in God) * Interested in Arche * An atheist * A sophist * Teaches the young (corrupting them) * * Socrates never tried to teach anyone * Therefore he denied he was a sophist

Oracle of Apollo at Delphi

* If socrates is not a sophist, and does not teach virtue, what has he been doing? * * He calls upon the Oracle to prove that he only has human wisdom (not divine) * The Oracle tells Socrates’ friend that he is “the wisest of men” * * What did the Oracle mean? * Socrates knows he is not wise, never mind the wisest * Therefore, he attempts to prove the Oracles legitimacy * * He questions others about there wisdom in order to see if the Oracle (a God) speaks the truth * By doing this he became the “spokesperson” for the Oracle * This led to Socrates