Butindeed;Me- situs, you have given sufficient Proof, that the Edu cation of Youth did never much disquiet you : And upon this
occasion
you have plainly given the World
toknow,thatyounevermindedit.
toknow,thatyounevermindedit.
Plato - 1701 - Works - a
?
| $
The Apology of Socrates
toldtutti,Evenus washappy,providingitwas true thatheknew theArt,andcou'dimpartittoothers.
,. As for mei Gentlemen, were I possels'd of such
Endowments, I shou'd be proud of 'em, and glory in
them:Butsatinismy misfortune, IhavenoTitle
tothem. Iperceiveyou'llbereadytoreply,*But
what haveye done then, Socrates, and what occasion? d these Calumnies you are charged with? Had you ne
verdonemorethanyourfellow Citizens,normeddled withfurtherbusiness,these Reportsofyouwou'dne ver have had a being. Tell us therefore how the matterstands, that we may notpass an unadvisedSen- tence. This,Itakeit,is ajustObjection:Where fore 111 endeavour to lay before you the occasion of
jmy being so much decry'd and talk'd of. <Give ear to me, and assure your selves that 111 speak nothing
but Truths
ThedisreputeIlieunder,isonly occasion'dbya
fortofWiidom withinme. ButwhatisthisWis dom ? Perhaps *tis merely human Prudence, for I tun a great risk of being possels'd of none else 5 whereas those Men I mention'd but now, are wile above above a human pitch.
IcansaynothingtothislastfortofWisdom, be c a u s e l a m a s t r a n g e r t o it $ a n d t h o s e w h o c h a r g e it uponme,arelyars,andmeanonlytoinjuremyRe putation. ButIbegthatyouAthenianswou'dnot be startled, it I seem to speak a little favourably of my self:Ishan'tadvance any thing uponmy own Authoritv,hut shall produce an unexceptionable Au thortovouchonmybehalf. Forawitnessofmy Wisdom,such:asitis,IreferyoutotheGodhim-
'['*Thusthewords-riant7;%$vrgjjlytutare to berender'd; andnotasdeSerresdoes,viz. . SZusnamhtc esttit*,res? What's jourbusiness thenf The Judges knew very well what was Sotrates'sbusiness,and consequentlycan'tbe suppos'd toput thatQuestiontohim. Butitisveryprobabletheymightask himwhatitwasthatbroughthimthither,orwhathehad done tomeritthoseCalumnies. Mardliusficinuswasbetter acquainted with the Spirit of the Greek Language, for he render'dit,S>#odmwt tmm esiopm?
self
? ? theApologypsSocrates. if-
selfthatpresidesatDelphi, You areallacquainted withCairepbon,who was my Companion from my Infancy, and had the likeIntimacy with most ofyou. He accompany'd you in your Esile, and letuirids- longwithyou. Sothatyecannotbut know what fortofaManCairepbonwas,andhoweagerlaall his Undertakings. One day, being at Detybi, he had the boldness to ask the Oracle (once more I begyou wou'd notbesurpris'dwithwhatIama- bout to fay ) Ifay, he put this Question tothe Ora cle,WhethertherewaseveraMastintheWorld morewilethanI, ThePriestessmadeanswer,That therewasnone. HisBrother,whoisyetalive,can (assure you that this is true. Wherefore I intreat you ? Athenians, to consider seriously the Reason why I present you with an account of all these things:For,itisonlytoshewyouthespringof those falseRumours thathave taken Airagainst me. '
When IheardtheOracle'sAnswer,Iputtheque stiontomyself;WhatdoestheQpdmean? What
2s the hidden Sense that lies couch'd under these words? For; Iam sensible,thatIam intitledtono Wiidom,neithersmallnorgreat. Whatthendoes theGodmeaningivingme outforthewisestof Men? SinceaDeitycannotlye. ThusIcontinuedg^<<*** a long time in sulpence about the meaning of the 'J** Oracle, till at last after a great deal of trouble, it cameinmy-mind tomakethistrial. Iwenttoone
o f our Citizens, that pastes for one o f the wisest M e n in Town, and hop'd that by instancing him, as be ing a Person more wise than I, 1 should refute the Oracle. When I examin'd thisMan, who was one of our greatest Politicians, and whole Name, I know, isasufficientrecommendation. Ifoundthatall theWorldlook'duponhimasawifeMan,andthat
he had the like thoughts of himself, but in effect:
was no iuch Man. After this discovery I made
itmybusinesstoconvincehimrhathewasnotthe
Manhetookhimselftobe. Nowthiswastheoc casionwhichrenderedme odioustothisMan, andto
? ? all those w h o assisted at that interview. W h e n
? ? 5s f
W h e n I p a r t e d w i t h h i m I r e a s o n ' d w i t h i n d a y selfj andsaidtomyselfjIamwiserthanthisMan. "Tis possible that neither he nor I know any thing that's good or valuable: But stil'therms this differencej
he is possels'd with an Opinion ofhis own know ledge, tho' at the fame time he knows nothings but Ii as I k n o w nothing, so I pretend to k n o w as little. So that upon this score, I thought m y self a little wiser than he, because I did hdt think that I knevv what I did not know. '
After that I visited another that pass'd for a wi serMan thantheformer? ,butfoundhiminthe
iame Circumstances, and by that discovery gain'd newEnemies. Howeverthisdidnotdiscckrfageme. I continued to make the fame Experiment upon others. Iwas sensiblethatbysodoingIdrewhatredupoh my self, which gave me some trouble, because I dreadedtheconsequencesofit. ButIwasconvinc'd that I was bound to prefer the Voice of God to all
rid
ffo Apology of Socrates.
Considerations, ? nd to apply m y self to the most"
.
rtsdcm- reputable Men, in order to find out its true meaning.
Zr/S' Andnowthat! musttellyou,O^A^m,thetruth, <<reUast thewholeresultofmyInquirywasthis. Atithose ejieem'darewho pass'dforthewisestMen,appear'dtome"tobe tfcTM7s *n^nitelylessdiipos'dtoWisdom,than tholewho
>>ijeT
were not at all so esteem'd. TocontinuetheAccountofallmy Adventures,in
ordertorefutetheOracle. Havingvisitedallthe . greatStatesmen,Iaddress'dmyselftothePoets, both Tragedians * Dithyrambicks and others j I m a d e no question, but I wou'd be catch'd napping, as the s a y i n g is, b y f i n d i n g m y s e l f f a r m d r e i g n o r a n t t h a r i
they. ItookupsomeoftheirmostelaboratePerfor mances, and put the question to 'em, what was their meaning, what Plot or Design they carried on in
*The Poets whocompil'dHymnstotheHonour6? Bac- elmsweresocalled. TheseDithyrambswerefullofasub limeRage,andconsistedofboldandnew-coin'dWords. And accordingly,inorder tobe successfulincompiling'ern,there: was anecessity of being transported with Fury and Enthusi asm. SeeourRemarksupontheidOdeofthe4thBookofHw.
these
? ? Ihe Apologyof SocntesL tj thesePieces? ,as ifImean'd tobe instructed. In
deed,Athenians,Iam asham'dtotellyouthetruth: but after all,since Imust out with it,there was not one Man ofthewhole company thatwas notmore capa ble to discourse of, and assign Reasons for the Poems, thantheirrespectiveAuthors. ThUsinalittlespace! of time, I discovered that t Poets do not carry ori their Work by the measures of Wisdom, but by a sortofEnthusiasm, andcertainimpulsesofNature,
like Prophets and Divines, that speak of a great m a
nyfinethingswhich theydonotunderstand. The^"* P o e t s s e e m ' d t o m e t o b e c a s t i n t h e f a m e M o u l d ? , p ^ t o ' " ,
and at the fame time I perceiv'd, that by reason of'whichi\b- theirPoetry, they look'd upon themselvesas thewi-J^'*''*<<'>>/>>* testofMen, and admirablywell vers'din all others
things, that have no relation to their business, and whichtheydonotatallunderstand. ThenIturn'd m y back upon 'em, being convinced . that I was ar bovethemuponthefame score,thatentitledmeto a preferencebeforethegreatPoliticians.
Having done with the Poets, to conclude m y Ih- ? 'uiry,Iaddress'dmyselftotheTradesmen. When accosted them, I was fully convinc'd that Iunder
stood nothing belonging to their Profession, and that ' Ishou'dfindthemtobeMen ofclearUnderstand ings and ready Parts : And indeed I was not deceiv'd. They knew all that I was ignorant of, and upon thatscorewereinfinitelywiserthanI. Batafterall, O Athenians, the wisest among them seem'd to fall foul upon the same Shelve with the Poets. * Fof every M a n of 'em presum'd so far upon his succels inthe way ofhisbusiness, thathe fansied himself to be admirably well vers'd in greater Matters : And this extravagant Fancy alone obscur'd their o- ther commendable Qualities.
tPoemsarenotmadebyhumanWisdom,butbyasortof Divine Inspiration j as Socrates makes it out, in the Dialogue calFd Ion.
* This Presumption of the Athenian Tradesmen,is a sufficient EvidenceoftheSpiritofthePeopleofAthens. Theylov'd to racddk with and judge of every thing.
>>
B b Then
? ? 18
the Apology ofSocrates.
ThenIputthe,questiontomy self,asarguingonthe b e h a l f o f t h e O r a c l e ? , w h e t h e r I f h o u ' d r a t h e r c h u s e
tocontinuesuchasIwas, withouteithertheKnow ledge of that fort of Men, or their Ignorance ; or to beentitledtoboth,andtobereduc'dtothelame Categorywith them? Ianswer'd,both formy self and for the Oracle, That it was infinitely preferable tocontinueasIwas. This,Gentlemen,isthesource of that dangerous and mortal Hatred and Enmity, which rais'd all the Calumnies I am now charg'd with,andchristen'dmeTheWise. Forallwhohear me, believethatIknow allthings;andbyVertue of that Knowledge am enabled to discover and ex posetheIgnoranceofothers. ButIamofOpinion,
Godalone thatthere's none trulyWise butGod himself5and >>Wise, thattheOraclemean'dsomuch,ingivingustoknow
that the utmost extent of human Wisdom is no greatmatter-,or,rather,thatitisjustnothing. And as for the Oracle's mentioning Socrates, doubtless m y N a m e w a s o n l y p r o p o s ' d a s a n I n s t a n c e -, s i g n i f y i n g
wisest'os' toa^^en'thatthewiseftai"ongthem,ishe,who,
Met.
likeSocrates,disclaimsallWisdom inhimself. Having fix'd upon thisTruth,Ipurpos'd to fortifie theIdeayet more,andtoobeyGod,incarryingon
my Inquiry,not only among my own Country-men but likewise among strangers; in order to try if I couldmeetwithanythatweretrulywise;and,in case I foundnone,toactthePartofan Interpreter totheOracle,and convincetheWorldthattheyare
strangerstoWisdom. ThismyDesigndoessoen grossbothmy TimeandmyThoughts,thatIhave not leasure,either to meddle in publick Business, Or to take care of my private Affairs, and thus my Cir cumstances are to narrow in the World, by reason of that continual Service and Worship * which I render
toGod.
Besides, a great many young Gentlemen, who are
*
By the Worsliip and Service done to God, he means the fains he took in convincing the World thai they have no Wisdom, and that God alone is entitled to it/
corns
? ? The Apology os Socrates? i^
come ofrichFamiliesand have Time at command, do willingly engage to follow me, and take so much pleasureinobservingtheMethod inwhich Iconfute all other Men, that they afterwards endeavour to imitateme inbafflingthosetheyengagewith:And itisnottobedoubted,butthattheymeetwitha
plentiful Harvest, by reason of the infinite number o f those vain M e n , w h o fansie they k n o w all things, tho' at the fame time they know nothing, or at least Very little.
AU thosewhom theyconvinceoftheirIgnorance; havetheir Eyeuponme and not upon them;and give it out, that there's one Socrates, a profligate and infamous Wretch^ who corrupts theTouth : And ifany
Body asks them what Socrates does, or what he teaches5theyknownothingofthematter:Butto avoid being at a stand, they have recourse to these
frivolous Reproaches that are commonly cast upon
Philosophers, viz. That he dives into the Heavens
andthebosomoftheEarthsthathebelievesinno
God, and colours bad Causes with a good Counte
nance. For they dare not tell the true matter of Fact,
that Socrates is too hard for them, and exposes them
for making a shew of knowing what they do not
know. 'Thus it came to pals that my ambitious,
violent and numerous Enemies, supported by a m u
tual Union, and back'd by an Eloquence capable to
ieduce men, did a great while ago suggest to ypu, the C a l u m n i e s t h e y h a d l O r g ' d a g a i n s t m e ? , a n d n o w h a v e
taken off and inveigled Me/itus, Anytm arid Lycori. Melitus stands by the Poets ? , Anytus represents the
Politicians and Tradesmen ; and Lycon appears for theOrators. So that you feeIhad reason totell youinthebeginningofmy Discourse,ThatIsliou'd look upon it as a great Miracle, if in so short i timeI coudunhingeaCalumny, thathashad so touch time to take root and fortifie it self in your Minds.
: This, Athenians, is the whole and the naked truth. Icbiicealnothingfromyou, andIdisguiseaslittle:
Bb3 * Tho1
? ? ao
the ApologyofSocrates. '
Tho* at the fame time I a m not ignorant, that all my advancesuponthisscoredobut exasperate the Wound. Buteven thatissufficientevidencethatI speak theTruth,and point to the true source of these Imputations. As often as ye'U take the Pains to can vass them, whether now or at another time, you'll befullyconvinc'dthatitisso. Andthis,Itakeit, isasufficientApology,againstmy firstAccusers.
I am now come up with the latter, and shallen
deavour to answer Melitus ; who, ifthe World will
takehiswordsoft,isaveryhonestMan, andvery
affectionate to his Country. To draw up the In
dictment in form, as I did in answer to' the first-y
the Purport of it is this : Socrates is guilty of unjust
things. HecorruptstheYouth,bynotbelievingthe Gods received by his Country, and introducing new
Deities. To examine everyArticleapart. HisPleais,That Iam guiltyofInjusticeincor ruptingtheYouth. AndI,ontheotherhand,al ledge that Melitus isa very unjust Man, for arraign
ing Men, on purpose, to make a shew of taking much Care of things that he never troubled his headwith. ThisChargeIamabouttomakegood. I challenge you then, Melitus, tell me, is there no thing you mind so much as the promoting the Good and Integrity of young Men as much as is possible >
Melitus. No, surethere'snothing.
Socrates. ButpraytellourJudges,whoitis that can render the Youth better ? For it is not to be queiiion'd, but that you can tell who, since you make that so much your business. In effect, since you have found out and impeach'd the Person that corruptsthem,you oughttotellwho isabletoset themright. Prayspeak Yousee,Melitus, you are put to a Nonplus, and know not what to , answer. Doesnotthiscoveryouwithshame? Is not this a convincing Proof that you never minded rheEducation ofYouth? Butoncemore,Who isit that's able to better the Youth ?
Melitus.
? ? theApologyofSocrates. ? %\
Melitus. TheLaws. ,f'
Socrates Thatisnotthething,myFriend. X askyouwho'tis? WhoistheMan? Foritisaplain Cafe, that the chiefthing that the Man must be vers'd in, is the Laws.
Melitus. Itellyou,Socrates,thattheseJudgesare t h e M e n . ? _ . ;
Socrates. How doyoumean, Melitus? What? Are these Judges the only M e n capable to instruct and better the Youth ? \. ,
Melitus. . Most certainly.
? Socrates. But, are all these Judges capable so to
d o ? O r , is it o n l y a p a r t i c u l a r n u m b e r o f t h e m ? Melitus. Mi ofem.
Socrates. ]-You talk strangely. You have found
outagreatnumberofgoodPreceptorsforus. But pray is the whole Audience capable likewise to bet ter the Youth, or not ?
Melitus. They are all likewise capable. Socrates. AndwhatdoyousayoftheSenators? Melitus. TheSenatorscanalibdoit. Socrates. But,my dearMelitus,dothosewhoha
rangue the publick Assemblies corrupt the Youth ; or are they capable in like manner to better them ?
Melitus. Theyarealllikewisecapable.
Socrates. Itwillfollowthen,thatalltheAtheni a n s a r e c a p a b l e t o i n s t r u c t : t h e Y o u t h w i t h o u t m e ? ,
andthatitisonlyIwhocorruptsthem. Isnotthis what you mean ?
Melitus. Itisjustso.
Socrates. I must needs own, that by this means youfastenaverygreatmisfortuneuponme. How ever,praygoon,andanswerme. Whatdoyou think ? Are Horses in the fame condition > Can ail Menmakethembetter,andisitonlyoneManthat has the secret of spoiling them ? Or, isit not just a contrary Cafe ? , that is, that only one Man, or a small number of Jockies, know how to betterthem, and the rest of Mankind, when they make use of 'em,do onlyspoilthem? Now, isnottheCaseof
Bb3 all
? ? ? 2
7he Apology of-Socrates.
all other Animals just the fame ? It'is certainly so; whether- Anytus and you agree to it, or not: for'it would be an infinite happiness and advantage to the Youth,iftherewereonlyoneMan intheWorld that could corrupt them, and every Body besides wereabletoredresstheirErrors.
Butindeed;Me- situs, you have given sufficient Proof, that the Edu cation of Youth did never much disquiet you : And upon this occasion you have plainly given the World
toknow,thatyounevermindedit. However,pray* Melitus, answer m e as to this Point : Whether does a Man benefitmore by livingwith honestMen, or with Knaves? Return me an Answer,my Friendj forIput nodifficultQuestiontoyou. Isitnottrue thatwickedMendoalwaysgivesomebadTincture to those who frequent their Company, and that good Men do always benefit those that live with them > ? . . ;. . ' v, .
Melitus. Yes-, doubtless.
Socrates. Is there any Man, who had ratherchuse to beprejudic'd,than to be benefitted by those he lives with? Answer me-, for the Law enjoyns you so todo. i. ;
Mel. No ? ,there'snone.
Soc. But now that you chargeme with corrupting and debauching the Youth ; whether do you alledge1 t h a t I d o it w i l l i n g l y a n d k n o w i n g l y , o r a g a i n s t m y Will ?
Mel. Willingly and knowingly.
Soc. How then, Melitus, does your Wisdom, in the Age you are now of, surpass mine at this Age ibfar,thatyouknow verywellthatwickedMen do always prejudice, and good Men benefit those who frequent their Company ; and yet thatI (hou'd beibignorantas nottoknow, thatifIdebauch any ofmy Followers, Irunthe riskofbeingprejudic'd by thtm, and at the fume time continue to draw thatEviluponmyselfbothwillinglyandknow ingly> InthisPoint,Melitus,Idonotbelieveyou atall;neitherdoIthinkthatanyMan intheWorld
can
? ? the Apology of Socrates 25
canbelieveyou. Foroneofthosetwothingsmust be true? ,namely* eitherthatI do notcorrupt the
Youth at all; or, if I do, that it is against m y will andwithoutmy knowledge. Now turntheCase uponwhichofthesetwoyouwill;itisplainthat youareaCalumniatorandaLyar. PuttheCase, thatIcorrupttheYouthagainstmy will;theLaw ? doesnotarraignMen forinvoluntaryCrimes. But
it orders that such M e n as are guilty of them, shou'd be taken aside,inform'd of 'em,and privately reprov'd for their Errors ; for 'tis plain, that if I be instructed to the full, I'llcease to be guilty of what I have committed against my Will, Now you have nei t h e r c o u n s e l e d m e n o r i n s t r u c t e d m e ? , b u t h a v e a r -
raign'd me before a Tribunal, which the Law has providedforthosewho deservePunishment, andnot forthose who standonly inneedofRemonstrances. This, Gentlemen, is a convincing Proof of what I alledged before ; namely, that Me/itus never minded or thought of these things.
But after all,praytell,how itisthatIcorrupt theYouth. AccordingtoyourInformation,'tis,by teaching them to disown the Gods acknowledged by theirCountry,andtohonourstrangeones. Isnot thisyour Plea ?
Mel. Itisjustfo.
Soc. Then,Melitus^IconjureyouintheNameof allthoseGods, whoseInterestisnowconcern'd,to explain your meaning more clearly, both to me and toourJudges. ForIamatalosstoknow,whe ther you allow that I teach the Youth to believe in any Gods, and only turn their Respect from the Gods of their own Country to Foreign ones ; or, whether you charge me with believing no God at
all,and snaking the Beliefofothers? Tho' at the bottom I am effectuallypersuaded that there are Gods;sothatAtheismisnoneofmy Crime.
Mel. IchargeyouwithowningnoGod.
Sae. You are a strange Man ! How can you
Bb4 talk
? ? 24
We ApologyofSocrates?
talkso? What ! -Do notIbelieve asotherMen do, thattheSunandMoonareGods? *
Mel. Certainly,Athenians,hebelievesinnoGod; for he fays the Sun is a Stone, and the M o o n a piece" of Earth.
Soc. M y dear Melitus, you think you are speak ing to Anaxagoras -, and treat our Judges very con temptuously, in thinkingthem so void of Letters, as not to know that the Books cf Anaxagoras and Cla- zomenian are stuff'd with such Stories. Besides, wou'd the Youth be at the trouble of learning from me suchthings asarecontain'dinthepublickBooks which are Ibid every day in the Orchestra for a Drachma ? This wou'd furnish them with a fair
opportunity of deriding Socrates, for attributing to himselfsuch things'asarenotonlynoneofhis,but likewiseahsurdandextravagant. Butpraytellme, do you alledge that I own no God?
' Mel. Yes, Ido.
Soc. You advanceincrediblethings,my dearMe
tisus? ,andarenotconsistentwith'yourself Suffer
m e to tell you, Athenians, that Melitus leems to m e tobevery insolent,and thathe haslaidthisAccusa tion against me, out of a youthful presumption to insult over me: For he's come hither, as it were, to. try me, in proposing a Riddle, and saying within himself, I'll see if Socrates, w h o pasies for so wise a Man, will be able to'discern that I'm upon the Banter, and advance contradictory things? ,or, ifI cangullhimandalltheAudience. Ineffecthis
Information presents us with a palpable contradiction. As if lie had said, Socrates is guilty cfInjustice m owning no Gods, and in owning Gods. And this is Banter all over. That's the Notion I have of it. I beg yoq would listen to me ; and, pursuant to iny first Request, wou'd not be incens'd against
Socraa-sthrewinthisIronicalExpression, inordertoex pose theridiculousnessoftheReligionoftheMhenlam, who iook'. iupon'theSunandMoonasGods,whichareonlythe Work vi God's Hands. . ? . . . - . .
me
? ? the Apology of Socrates. -
>>jp
me ,sot addressing you in my ordinary way of
speaking.
A n s w e r m e , M e l i t u s t, I s t h e r e a n y M a n i n t h e
World thatbelievesthattherearehuman things3and yetdeniesthe beingofMen ? Prayanswer, and do1 notmakesomuchNoise. IsthereanyManwho believes that there are certain Rules for managing of Horses, and yet believes there is no such thing as a Horse? Is there any Man that troubles himself with Tunes for a Flute, and yet believes that no Man can play upon it? There's no such Man, to:
be sure? ,forsinceyouwillnot answeryourself,I'll answer for you. But pray answer me as to this Point:IsthereanyMan thatbelievesdivinethings, andyetdeniesthe beingofaGod? ,
Mel. No,certainlythere'snone.
Soc, What painshaveItaken towrestthatword outofyou! <YouacknowledgethenthatIbelieve and teach the being of Deities. So that whether they be new or old, you stillown that I believe in Deities. AndtothispurposeyousworeinyourIn formation. . Now, ifIbelievethatthereareDei ties, I must necessarily suppose that there are Gods. Isnotitso? Yes,doubtless. Itakeyoursilence forconsent. ButtheseDeitiesorDemons,donot we takethemforGods, ortheChildrenofGods? Answer me.
? Mel. Yes,doubtless. *ThesePassagesaremoreimportantthanatfirstviewthey
seemtobe. Whoeverbelieves,thattherearesuchCreaturesas the Children of Gods, believes that there are Gods. The acknowledgingofAngelsimpliesthe beliefofGods; which isthethingthatSocratespointsto. TheseinferiorGodsare Children and Ministers,of the Supreme God, the God of Gods. N o w Socrates own'd an infinite number of these subordinate Beings, which he look'd upon as a continued Chain descend ing from the Throne of God to the Earth, and as the Bonds otCommercebetweenGodandMen,andtheMediumwhich unitesHeavenandEarth. ThisNotionofhismightbeta ken from Homer's mysterious Chain ; or, perhaps he had heard ofJacob'sLadder, thetopwereofreach'd toHeaven, whenthe footstoodupontheEarth;upon whichtheAn
gelsofGodascended anddescended,Ge>>. i8. u.
i. \ "? '? ' Soc.
?
? t
? Men.
* Socrates speaks thus in compliance with the Opinion of the People, who believ'd the Demons ow'd their Being to the Correspondence of the Gods with their Nymphs or W o men* Nowuponthisoccasion,itwasnothisbirfinesstoat tackthatError. Tiscertain,thatSocrateswasnotofthat Opibn ; for he had learn'dof"Pythagoras,that Demons or An gels and Hero's, that is, devout M e n and Saints, are the Sons of God, because they derive from him their Being, as Light owesit'sOriginaltoaluminousBody. AndinhisTlmtm^
speaking of the Generation of Angels or Demons, he fays, 'tis above the reach of human Nature. ? ? '-'?
jt6
Tfe ^poto^ cf Socrates?
Six. And by. consequence you acknowledge thatI
believe there are Demons, and that these Demons areGods? ,you havenow afairProofofmy Alle
gation-, namely, that you propos'd to m e a Riddle, in ordertodivert your selfto my cost* inalledg ing that I own'd no Gods, and yet believe there are Demons. ForifDemonsareChildrenof*God,or Bastards, if ye will, since they are laid to be born ofNymphs orotherWomen,whoistheMan that owns theChildrenof Gods,and yetdeniestheBe ing of the Gods themselves ? This is as great an Ab surdity, as ifonespoke ofColtsand Eaglets,and yetdeny'dtheBeingofHorsesorEagles. Sothat, Melitus,'tisaplainCase thatyoulaidthisAccusa tionagainstme, inordertomaketrialofmy Partsj orelseyoumustownthatyou havenolawfulpre tencefor citingme beforethisTribunal. For you willneverconvinceanyManwhohasonegrainof Sense, that the fame Man who believes that there are suchthings as relate tothe GodsandtoDe mons, will yet believe that there are neither De* mons,norGods,norHero's. That'saltogetherim possible. ButIneednotenlargemyDefencesbe fore you, Athenians : W h a t I have already laid will sufficetomakeitout,thatIamnotguiltyofIn
justice, and that Melitus's Charge is groundless.
TheHatrd AsforwhatItoldyouinthebeginning,about
andEn-yyofdrawingthe HatredoftheCitizensuponme-,you thePeople mav reftsatisfiedthatitisjustso:And that,ifIdie,
*w<<w *owem)rdeath,nott0Melitus,nortoAnytus,but tlhonest tothatSpiritofHatredandEnvythatreignsamong
the
? ? The Apology of Socrates!
27
the People, which has ruin'd so many honest Men, and will still continue to bring others to the like Fate. Foritisnottobehop'dthatmydeathwill concludetheTragedy. Wereitso,myLifewould be but too well spent.
But perhaps some will fay, Are notyou afhansd, Socrates,thatyou applydyourselftoastudy thatnow putsyou indangerofyourLife? To thisObjection
I'll give a satisfying Anlwer ; Whoever is the M a n thatputsittome, I mustneedstellhim, thathe's muchout,inbelievingthataManofanyValouror Vertue ought to regard the Considerations ofDeath orLife. The only thing he ought to mind in aU his Enterprises, is,to fee thathisActionsbejust,and suchasbecomeanhonestMan. Otherwiseitwou'd
follow from your Proposition, that the Demi gods whody'dattheSiegeofTroy,werealloferaim prudent, especially the Son of Thetis, who was in finitely more careful to avoid Shame than Death ; insomuch that his Mother seeing him impatient to kill//<? &>>*,accostedhim, asIremember,inthese
TermsjMy Son,ifyourevengethedeathofPatro-inthe2<l clus by killing Hector, you'll certainly die yourself. Sookoftlit NowherSon wassolittlemov'dbyherThreats,Iliads*
and contemn'd Death so much, that he was infi
nitely more afraid to live like a Coward, and not
resent thedeathofhisFriends. MayIdieimmedi-
ntely,fd\dhQ,providing Ido butpunish theMurderer ofPatroclus;providing IdonotlieexposedtoCon
tempts and accounted an useless Burden to the Earth. ? Now, what do ye think ? Does he stand upon the
consideration of Danger and Death ? It is a cer
tainTruth,Athenians,thateveryMan who has
pick'd out tohimselfan'honourablePost, orisput
into it by his Superiors, ought to stand up steddily,s,"me {i
;
maugre allthe Danger thatsurrounds him, without XZ/ed consideringeither Death orwhat isyetmoreterri-thanDeaths rible, but bending his whole Care to avoid shame.
SothatIshoudbeguiltyofamonstrousCrime,
if, after the faithful Services I have done, in expo- ? r. j: . '; :. ,*,. . . . ;. :. \ ? sing
? ? J M .
t o a v o i d t h o s e E v i l s t h a t I d o n o t k n o w -, a n d w h i c h , foranythingIknow,mayreallybegood. ButI shall always dread and avoid those Evils which I certainly know to be such.
Now, after all the solicitations of Anytus, in re presenting to you the necessity of bringing m e to a Trial,andnowthatIamuponit,thatyoucannot dispense with my Life, lestyour Sons who areal ready so much addicted to my Doctrine, should be entirely corrupted : Supposing, I say, that after all these Remonstrances, you shou'd say to me, Sveraiez,
it
The Apohgy of Socrates? i
fingmy LifeIbofteninthePostsIwasprefer'dto
by our Generals, at Poridoea, Amphipolis^ and De/i-
*<<? ,Ishouldnowbe sotransportedwiththefearof
Death, or any other Danger, as to abandon the Post
in which God has now placed me, enjoyning me to
Ipendmy life-timeinthestudyofPhilosophy,in
examiningmy selfandothers. Thatindeedwould
be a criminal Desertion, and wou'dJustly occasion
theArraignment ofmebeforethisTribunal,asbe
ing aprofligateMan thatowns no Gods, disobeys
an Oracle, tears Death, and believes himself Wise.
For to fear Death, is nothing else, but to believe W << a >v the o n e ' s s e l f t o b e w i s e w h e n t h e y a r e n o t ; a n d t o f a n -
fr"*t fiethattheyknowwhattheydonotknow. Inef- . - fe&nog0(jyknowsDeath;noBodycantell,but jfht]x itmaybethegreatestBenefitofMankind;andyet greyestBe-Men areafraidon't,asifthey knew certainlythat meptojustitWere the greatestofEvils. Now isnotthisa
*^"- scandalous Ignorance, for M e n to fanfie they k n o w what they do not know *
For m y part I differ in that Point from all other Men, and ifin any thing I seem more wise than they, it is in this, That, as I do not know what passes in the Regions below, so I do not pretend
P>fi6e&- toknowit. AllthatIknowisthis,Thatthere's mcetoournothingmore criminal orscandalous,thantobe
^TZ]" " Sutity of an unjust thing, and to disobey those who *TwW asebetterthanwe,orplac'daboveus,whetherGods *>>. *shame-orMen. SothatIshallneyerdreadorendeavour
,'~: we
? ? the Apology,of Socrates? ajj
we havenoregard tothe AllegationsofAnytus: We dismiss and absolveyou, butuponthisCondi tion, that you shall give over the proper suit of your Philosophy and wonted Enquiries -,and in case you be found guilty of a relapse, you shall certainly die. Ifyoucastmy AbsolutionupontheseTerms,' I answer you, Athenians, That I honour and love you, but that I'll rather obey God than you ? ,and that while I live 111 never abandon the exercise of Philosophy, in admonishing and checking you ac cordingtomy usualCustom,andaddressingmy self to every one I meet in this fashion : Sinceyou areso boneftaMan, andaCitizenofthefamousestCityin the World, equally renown*d for Wisdom and Valour; are notyou afbairidto make ityour wholebusiness to amassRiches,and topurchaseGlory,CreditandHo' nour;andatthesametime toflight thetreasures of Prudence, Truth, and Wisdom, and not to think of
improving your Soul to the highest Perfection it isca
pable of ? If any M a n denies this to be his Cafe, and maintains that he minds the Concerns of hisSoul,*&*? is*
I will not take his word ior't-, but I'llinterrogate,t^vLa, examine and confutehim;ifIfindthatheisnotaself<<? <- trulyVertuous,butmakes ashewofbeingsuch,I'll>><<<<6<<* m a k e h i m a s h a m ' d , a n d t w i t h i m w i t h h i s i g n o r a n c e , "f" inpreferringvileand perishingthings,tothosewhich
are infinitely more valuable, and will never part from us.
InthisfashionWillIdiscoursetheYoungand the O l d , t h e C i t i z e n s a n d F o r e i g n e r s ? , b u t a b o v e a l l , y o u
Citizens,forwhomIammostconcern'd. For,be itknowntoyou,thatIamcommissionsbyGodso
to do ; and I'm fully persuaded that your City ne
ver enjoy'd so great an Advantage, as this my con tinuedServicetoGod. Allmybusinessistoper suade you, both Young and Old, that you ought not todoatsomuchuponyourBody,yourRiches,and otherthingsyou arefondof,butshouldloveyour^Xod
Souls. Ievertellyou,thatVertuedoesnotflowthingsare from Riches; but on the contrary, that Riches*hefroduel
spring? fVertue-
, .
? ? ^b
the Apology of Socrates.
The Apology of Socrates
toldtutti,Evenus washappy,providingitwas true thatheknew theArt,andcou'dimpartittoothers.
,. As for mei Gentlemen, were I possels'd of such
Endowments, I shou'd be proud of 'em, and glory in
them:Butsatinismy misfortune, IhavenoTitle
tothem. Iperceiveyou'llbereadytoreply,*But
what haveye done then, Socrates, and what occasion? d these Calumnies you are charged with? Had you ne
verdonemorethanyourfellow Citizens,normeddled withfurtherbusiness,these Reportsofyouwou'dne ver have had a being. Tell us therefore how the matterstands, that we may notpass an unadvisedSen- tence. This,Itakeit,is ajustObjection:Where fore 111 endeavour to lay before you the occasion of
jmy being so much decry'd and talk'd of. <Give ear to me, and assure your selves that 111 speak nothing
but Truths
ThedisreputeIlieunder,isonly occasion'dbya
fortofWiidom withinme. ButwhatisthisWis dom ? Perhaps *tis merely human Prudence, for I tun a great risk of being possels'd of none else 5 whereas those Men I mention'd but now, are wile above above a human pitch.
IcansaynothingtothislastfortofWisdom, be c a u s e l a m a s t r a n g e r t o it $ a n d t h o s e w h o c h a r g e it uponme,arelyars,andmeanonlytoinjuremyRe putation. ButIbegthatyouAthenianswou'dnot be startled, it I seem to speak a little favourably of my self:Ishan'tadvance any thing uponmy own Authoritv,hut shall produce an unexceptionable Au thortovouchonmybehalf. Forawitnessofmy Wisdom,such:asitis,IreferyoutotheGodhim-
'['*Thusthewords-riant7;%$vrgjjlytutare to berender'd; andnotasdeSerresdoes,viz. . SZusnamhtc esttit*,res? What's jourbusiness thenf The Judges knew very well what was Sotrates'sbusiness,and consequentlycan'tbe suppos'd toput thatQuestiontohim. Butitisveryprobabletheymightask himwhatitwasthatbroughthimthither,orwhathehad done tomeritthoseCalumnies. Mardliusficinuswasbetter acquainted with the Spirit of the Greek Language, for he render'dit,S>#odmwt tmm esiopm?
self
? ? theApologypsSocrates. if-
selfthatpresidesatDelphi, You areallacquainted withCairepbon,who was my Companion from my Infancy, and had the likeIntimacy with most ofyou. He accompany'd you in your Esile, and letuirids- longwithyou. Sothatyecannotbut know what fortofaManCairepbonwas,andhoweagerlaall his Undertakings. One day, being at Detybi, he had the boldness to ask the Oracle (once more I begyou wou'd notbesurpris'dwithwhatIama- bout to fay ) Ifay, he put this Question tothe Ora cle,WhethertherewaseveraMastintheWorld morewilethanI, ThePriestessmadeanswer,That therewasnone. HisBrother,whoisyetalive,can (assure you that this is true. Wherefore I intreat you ? Athenians, to consider seriously the Reason why I present you with an account of all these things:For,itisonlytoshewyouthespringof those falseRumours thathave taken Airagainst me. '
When IheardtheOracle'sAnswer,Iputtheque stiontomyself;WhatdoestheQpdmean? What
2s the hidden Sense that lies couch'd under these words? For; Iam sensible,thatIam intitledtono Wiidom,neithersmallnorgreat. Whatthendoes theGodmeaningivingme outforthewisestof Men? SinceaDeitycannotlye. ThusIcontinuedg^<<*** a long time in sulpence about the meaning of the 'J** Oracle, till at last after a great deal of trouble, it cameinmy-mind tomakethistrial. Iwenttoone
o f our Citizens, that pastes for one o f the wisest M e n in Town, and hop'd that by instancing him, as be ing a Person more wise than I, 1 should refute the Oracle. When I examin'd thisMan, who was one of our greatest Politicians, and whole Name, I know, isasufficientrecommendation. Ifoundthatall theWorldlook'duponhimasawifeMan,andthat
he had the like thoughts of himself, but in effect:
was no iuch Man. After this discovery I made
itmybusinesstoconvincehimrhathewasnotthe
Manhetookhimselftobe. Nowthiswastheoc casionwhichrenderedme odioustothisMan, andto
? ? all those w h o assisted at that interview. W h e n
? ? 5s f
W h e n I p a r t e d w i t h h i m I r e a s o n ' d w i t h i n d a y selfj andsaidtomyselfjIamwiserthanthisMan. "Tis possible that neither he nor I know any thing that's good or valuable: But stil'therms this differencej
he is possels'd with an Opinion ofhis own know ledge, tho' at the fame time he knows nothings but Ii as I k n o w nothing, so I pretend to k n o w as little. So that upon this score, I thought m y self a little wiser than he, because I did hdt think that I knevv what I did not know. '
After that I visited another that pass'd for a wi serMan thantheformer? ,butfoundhiminthe
iame Circumstances, and by that discovery gain'd newEnemies. Howeverthisdidnotdiscckrfageme. I continued to make the fame Experiment upon others. Iwas sensiblethatbysodoingIdrewhatredupoh my self, which gave me some trouble, because I dreadedtheconsequencesofit. ButIwasconvinc'd that I was bound to prefer the Voice of God to all
rid
ffo Apology of Socrates.
Considerations, ? nd to apply m y self to the most"
.
rtsdcm- reputable Men, in order to find out its true meaning.
Zr/S' Andnowthat! musttellyou,O^A^m,thetruth, <<reUast thewholeresultofmyInquirywasthis. Atithose ejieem'darewho pass'dforthewisestMen,appear'dtome"tobe tfcTM7s *n^nitelylessdiipos'dtoWisdom,than tholewho
>>ijeT
were not at all so esteem'd. TocontinuetheAccountofallmy Adventures,in
ordertorefutetheOracle. Havingvisitedallthe . greatStatesmen,Iaddress'dmyselftothePoets, both Tragedians * Dithyrambicks and others j I m a d e no question, but I wou'd be catch'd napping, as the s a y i n g is, b y f i n d i n g m y s e l f f a r m d r e i g n o r a n t t h a r i
they. ItookupsomeoftheirmostelaboratePerfor mances, and put the question to 'em, what was their meaning, what Plot or Design they carried on in
*The Poets whocompil'dHymnstotheHonour6? Bac- elmsweresocalled. TheseDithyrambswerefullofasub limeRage,andconsistedofboldandnew-coin'dWords. And accordingly,inorder tobe successfulincompiling'ern,there: was anecessity of being transported with Fury and Enthusi asm. SeeourRemarksupontheidOdeofthe4thBookofHw.
these
? ? Ihe Apologyof SocntesL tj thesePieces? ,as ifImean'd tobe instructed. In
deed,Athenians,Iam asham'dtotellyouthetruth: but after all,since Imust out with it,there was not one Man ofthewhole company thatwas notmore capa ble to discourse of, and assign Reasons for the Poems, thantheirrespectiveAuthors. ThUsinalittlespace! of time, I discovered that t Poets do not carry ori their Work by the measures of Wisdom, but by a sortofEnthusiasm, andcertainimpulsesofNature,
like Prophets and Divines, that speak of a great m a
nyfinethingswhich theydonotunderstand. The^"* P o e t s s e e m ' d t o m e t o b e c a s t i n t h e f a m e M o u l d ? , p ^ t o ' " ,
and at the fame time I perceiv'd, that by reason of'whichi\b- theirPoetry, they look'd upon themselvesas thewi-J^'*''*<<'>>/>>* testofMen, and admirablywell vers'din all others
things, that have no relation to their business, and whichtheydonotatallunderstand. ThenIturn'd m y back upon 'em, being convinced . that I was ar bovethemuponthefame score,thatentitledmeto a preferencebeforethegreatPoliticians.
Having done with the Poets, to conclude m y Ih- ? 'uiry,Iaddress'dmyselftotheTradesmen. When accosted them, I was fully convinc'd that Iunder
stood nothing belonging to their Profession, and that ' Ishou'dfindthemtobeMen ofclearUnderstand ings and ready Parts : And indeed I was not deceiv'd. They knew all that I was ignorant of, and upon thatscorewereinfinitelywiserthanI. Batafterall, O Athenians, the wisest among them seem'd to fall foul upon the same Shelve with the Poets. * Fof every M a n of 'em presum'd so far upon his succels inthe way ofhisbusiness, thathe fansied himself to be admirably well vers'd in greater Matters : And this extravagant Fancy alone obscur'd their o- ther commendable Qualities.
tPoemsarenotmadebyhumanWisdom,butbyasortof Divine Inspiration j as Socrates makes it out, in the Dialogue calFd Ion.
* This Presumption of the Athenian Tradesmen,is a sufficient EvidenceoftheSpiritofthePeopleofAthens. Theylov'd to racddk with and judge of every thing.
>>
B b Then
? ? 18
the Apology ofSocrates.
ThenIputthe,questiontomy self,asarguingonthe b e h a l f o f t h e O r a c l e ? , w h e t h e r I f h o u ' d r a t h e r c h u s e
tocontinuesuchasIwas, withouteithertheKnow ledge of that fort of Men, or their Ignorance ; or to beentitledtoboth,andtobereduc'dtothelame Categorywith them? Ianswer'd,both formy self and for the Oracle, That it was infinitely preferable tocontinueasIwas. This,Gentlemen,isthesource of that dangerous and mortal Hatred and Enmity, which rais'd all the Calumnies I am now charg'd with,andchristen'dmeTheWise. Forallwhohear me, believethatIknow allthings;andbyVertue of that Knowledge am enabled to discover and ex posetheIgnoranceofothers. ButIamofOpinion,
Godalone thatthere's none trulyWise butGod himself5and >>Wise, thattheOraclemean'dsomuch,ingivingustoknow
that the utmost extent of human Wisdom is no greatmatter-,or,rather,thatitisjustnothing. And as for the Oracle's mentioning Socrates, doubtless m y N a m e w a s o n l y p r o p o s ' d a s a n I n s t a n c e -, s i g n i f y i n g
wisest'os' toa^^en'thatthewiseftai"ongthem,ishe,who,
Met.
likeSocrates,disclaimsallWisdom inhimself. Having fix'd upon thisTruth,Ipurpos'd to fortifie theIdeayet more,andtoobeyGod,incarryingon
my Inquiry,not only among my own Country-men but likewise among strangers; in order to try if I couldmeetwithanythatweretrulywise;and,in case I foundnone,toactthePartofan Interpreter totheOracle,and convincetheWorldthattheyare
strangerstoWisdom. ThismyDesigndoessoen grossbothmy TimeandmyThoughts,thatIhave not leasure,either to meddle in publick Business, Or to take care of my private Affairs, and thus my Cir cumstances are to narrow in the World, by reason of that continual Service and Worship * which I render
toGod.
Besides, a great many young Gentlemen, who are
*
By the Worsliip and Service done to God, he means the fains he took in convincing the World thai they have no Wisdom, and that God alone is entitled to it/
corns
? ? The Apology os Socrates? i^
come ofrichFamiliesand have Time at command, do willingly engage to follow me, and take so much pleasureinobservingtheMethod inwhich Iconfute all other Men, that they afterwards endeavour to imitateme inbafflingthosetheyengagewith:And itisnottobedoubted,butthattheymeetwitha
plentiful Harvest, by reason of the infinite number o f those vain M e n , w h o fansie they k n o w all things, tho' at the fame time they know nothing, or at least Very little.
AU thosewhom theyconvinceoftheirIgnorance; havetheir Eyeuponme and not upon them;and give it out, that there's one Socrates, a profligate and infamous Wretch^ who corrupts theTouth : And ifany
Body asks them what Socrates does, or what he teaches5theyknownothingofthematter:Butto avoid being at a stand, they have recourse to these
frivolous Reproaches that are commonly cast upon
Philosophers, viz. That he dives into the Heavens
andthebosomoftheEarthsthathebelievesinno
God, and colours bad Causes with a good Counte
nance. For they dare not tell the true matter of Fact,
that Socrates is too hard for them, and exposes them
for making a shew of knowing what they do not
know. 'Thus it came to pals that my ambitious,
violent and numerous Enemies, supported by a m u
tual Union, and back'd by an Eloquence capable to
ieduce men, did a great while ago suggest to ypu, the C a l u m n i e s t h e y h a d l O r g ' d a g a i n s t m e ? , a n d n o w h a v e
taken off and inveigled Me/itus, Anytm arid Lycori. Melitus stands by the Poets ? , Anytus represents the
Politicians and Tradesmen ; and Lycon appears for theOrators. So that you feeIhad reason totell youinthebeginningofmy Discourse,ThatIsliou'd look upon it as a great Miracle, if in so short i timeI coudunhingeaCalumny, thathashad so touch time to take root and fortifie it self in your Minds.
: This, Athenians, is the whole and the naked truth. Icbiicealnothingfromyou, andIdisguiseaslittle:
Bb3 * Tho1
? ? ao
the ApologyofSocrates. '
Tho* at the fame time I a m not ignorant, that all my advancesuponthisscoredobut exasperate the Wound. Buteven thatissufficientevidencethatI speak theTruth,and point to the true source of these Imputations. As often as ye'U take the Pains to can vass them, whether now or at another time, you'll befullyconvinc'dthatitisso. Andthis,Itakeit, isasufficientApology,againstmy firstAccusers.
I am now come up with the latter, and shallen
deavour to answer Melitus ; who, ifthe World will
takehiswordsoft,isaveryhonestMan, andvery
affectionate to his Country. To draw up the In
dictment in form, as I did in answer to' the first-y
the Purport of it is this : Socrates is guilty of unjust
things. HecorruptstheYouth,bynotbelievingthe Gods received by his Country, and introducing new
Deities. To examine everyArticleapart. HisPleais,That Iam guiltyofInjusticeincor ruptingtheYouth. AndI,ontheotherhand,al ledge that Melitus isa very unjust Man, for arraign
ing Men, on purpose, to make a shew of taking much Care of things that he never troubled his headwith. ThisChargeIamabouttomakegood. I challenge you then, Melitus, tell me, is there no thing you mind so much as the promoting the Good and Integrity of young Men as much as is possible >
Melitus. No, surethere'snothing.
Socrates. ButpraytellourJudges,whoitis that can render the Youth better ? For it is not to be queiiion'd, but that you can tell who, since you make that so much your business. In effect, since you have found out and impeach'd the Person that corruptsthem,you oughttotellwho isabletoset themright. Prayspeak Yousee,Melitus, you are put to a Nonplus, and know not what to , answer. Doesnotthiscoveryouwithshame? Is not this a convincing Proof that you never minded rheEducation ofYouth? Butoncemore,Who isit that's able to better the Youth ?
Melitus.
? ? theApologyofSocrates. ? %\
Melitus. TheLaws. ,f'
Socrates Thatisnotthething,myFriend. X askyouwho'tis? WhoistheMan? Foritisaplain Cafe, that the chiefthing that the Man must be vers'd in, is the Laws.
Melitus. Itellyou,Socrates,thattheseJudgesare t h e M e n . ? _ . ;
Socrates. How doyoumean, Melitus? What? Are these Judges the only M e n capable to instruct and better the Youth ? \. ,
Melitus. . Most certainly.
? Socrates. But, are all these Judges capable so to
d o ? O r , is it o n l y a p a r t i c u l a r n u m b e r o f t h e m ? Melitus. Mi ofem.
Socrates. ]-You talk strangely. You have found
outagreatnumberofgoodPreceptorsforus. But pray is the whole Audience capable likewise to bet ter the Youth, or not ?
Melitus. They are all likewise capable. Socrates. AndwhatdoyousayoftheSenators? Melitus. TheSenatorscanalibdoit. Socrates. But,my dearMelitus,dothosewhoha
rangue the publick Assemblies corrupt the Youth ; or are they capable in like manner to better them ?
Melitus. Theyarealllikewisecapable.
Socrates. Itwillfollowthen,thatalltheAtheni a n s a r e c a p a b l e t o i n s t r u c t : t h e Y o u t h w i t h o u t m e ? ,
andthatitisonlyIwhocorruptsthem. Isnotthis what you mean ?
Melitus. Itisjustso.
Socrates. I must needs own, that by this means youfastenaverygreatmisfortuneuponme. How ever,praygoon,andanswerme. Whatdoyou think ? Are Horses in the fame condition > Can ail Menmakethembetter,andisitonlyoneManthat has the secret of spoiling them ? Or, isit not just a contrary Cafe ? , that is, that only one Man, or a small number of Jockies, know how to betterthem, and the rest of Mankind, when they make use of 'em,do onlyspoilthem? Now, isnottheCaseof
Bb3 all
? ? ? 2
7he Apology of-Socrates.
all other Animals just the fame ? It'is certainly so; whether- Anytus and you agree to it, or not: for'it would be an infinite happiness and advantage to the Youth,iftherewereonlyoneMan intheWorld that could corrupt them, and every Body besides wereabletoredresstheirErrors.
Butindeed;Me- situs, you have given sufficient Proof, that the Edu cation of Youth did never much disquiet you : And upon this occasion you have plainly given the World
toknow,thatyounevermindedit. However,pray* Melitus, answer m e as to this Point : Whether does a Man benefitmore by livingwith honestMen, or with Knaves? Return me an Answer,my Friendj forIput nodifficultQuestiontoyou. Isitnottrue thatwickedMendoalwaysgivesomebadTincture to those who frequent their Company, and that good Men do always benefit those that live with them > ? . . ;. . ' v, .
Melitus. Yes-, doubtless.
Socrates. Is there any Man, who had ratherchuse to beprejudic'd,than to be benefitted by those he lives with? Answer me-, for the Law enjoyns you so todo. i. ;
Mel. No ? ,there'snone.
Soc. But now that you chargeme with corrupting and debauching the Youth ; whether do you alledge1 t h a t I d o it w i l l i n g l y a n d k n o w i n g l y , o r a g a i n s t m y Will ?
Mel. Willingly and knowingly.
Soc. How then, Melitus, does your Wisdom, in the Age you are now of, surpass mine at this Age ibfar,thatyouknow verywellthatwickedMen do always prejudice, and good Men benefit those who frequent their Company ; and yet thatI (hou'd beibignorantas nottoknow, thatifIdebauch any ofmy Followers, Irunthe riskofbeingprejudic'd by thtm, and at the fume time continue to draw thatEviluponmyselfbothwillinglyandknow ingly> InthisPoint,Melitus,Idonotbelieveyou atall;neitherdoIthinkthatanyMan intheWorld
can
? ? the Apology of Socrates 25
canbelieveyou. Foroneofthosetwothingsmust be true? ,namely* eitherthatI do notcorrupt the
Youth at all; or, if I do, that it is against m y will andwithoutmy knowledge. Now turntheCase uponwhichofthesetwoyouwill;itisplainthat youareaCalumniatorandaLyar. PuttheCase, thatIcorrupttheYouthagainstmy will;theLaw ? doesnotarraignMen forinvoluntaryCrimes. But
it orders that such M e n as are guilty of them, shou'd be taken aside,inform'd of 'em,and privately reprov'd for their Errors ; for 'tis plain, that if I be instructed to the full, I'llcease to be guilty of what I have committed against my Will, Now you have nei t h e r c o u n s e l e d m e n o r i n s t r u c t e d m e ? , b u t h a v e a r -
raign'd me before a Tribunal, which the Law has providedforthosewho deservePunishment, andnot forthose who standonly inneedofRemonstrances. This, Gentlemen, is a convincing Proof of what I alledged before ; namely, that Me/itus never minded or thought of these things.
But after all,praytell,how itisthatIcorrupt theYouth. AccordingtoyourInformation,'tis,by teaching them to disown the Gods acknowledged by theirCountry,andtohonourstrangeones. Isnot thisyour Plea ?
Mel. Itisjustfo.
Soc. Then,Melitus^IconjureyouintheNameof allthoseGods, whoseInterestisnowconcern'd,to explain your meaning more clearly, both to me and toourJudges. ForIamatalosstoknow,whe ther you allow that I teach the Youth to believe in any Gods, and only turn their Respect from the Gods of their own Country to Foreign ones ; or, whether you charge me with believing no God at
all,and snaking the Beliefofothers? Tho' at the bottom I am effectuallypersuaded that there are Gods;sothatAtheismisnoneofmy Crime.
Mel. IchargeyouwithowningnoGod.
Sae. You are a strange Man ! How can you
Bb4 talk
? ? 24
We ApologyofSocrates?
talkso? What ! -Do notIbelieve asotherMen do, thattheSunandMoonareGods? *
Mel. Certainly,Athenians,hebelievesinnoGod; for he fays the Sun is a Stone, and the M o o n a piece" of Earth.
Soc. M y dear Melitus, you think you are speak ing to Anaxagoras -, and treat our Judges very con temptuously, in thinkingthem so void of Letters, as not to know that the Books cf Anaxagoras and Cla- zomenian are stuff'd with such Stories. Besides, wou'd the Youth be at the trouble of learning from me suchthings asarecontain'dinthepublickBooks which are Ibid every day in the Orchestra for a Drachma ? This wou'd furnish them with a fair
opportunity of deriding Socrates, for attributing to himselfsuch things'asarenotonlynoneofhis,but likewiseahsurdandextravagant. Butpraytellme, do you alledge that I own no God?
' Mel. Yes, Ido.
Soc. You advanceincrediblethings,my dearMe
tisus? ,andarenotconsistentwith'yourself Suffer
m e to tell you, Athenians, that Melitus leems to m e tobevery insolent,and thathe haslaidthisAccusa tion against me, out of a youthful presumption to insult over me: For he's come hither, as it were, to. try me, in proposing a Riddle, and saying within himself, I'll see if Socrates, w h o pasies for so wise a Man, will be able to'discern that I'm upon the Banter, and advance contradictory things? ,or, ifI cangullhimandalltheAudience. Ineffecthis
Information presents us with a palpable contradiction. As if lie had said, Socrates is guilty cfInjustice m owning no Gods, and in owning Gods. And this is Banter all over. That's the Notion I have of it. I beg yoq would listen to me ; and, pursuant to iny first Request, wou'd not be incens'd against
Socraa-sthrewinthisIronicalExpression, inordertoex pose theridiculousnessoftheReligionoftheMhenlam, who iook'. iupon'theSunandMoonasGods,whichareonlythe Work vi God's Hands. . ? . . . - . .
me
? ? the Apology of Socrates. -
>>jp
me ,sot addressing you in my ordinary way of
speaking.
A n s w e r m e , M e l i t u s t, I s t h e r e a n y M a n i n t h e
World thatbelievesthattherearehuman things3and yetdeniesthe beingofMen ? Prayanswer, and do1 notmakesomuchNoise. IsthereanyManwho believes that there are certain Rules for managing of Horses, and yet believes there is no such thing as a Horse? Is there any Man that troubles himself with Tunes for a Flute, and yet believes that no Man can play upon it? There's no such Man, to:
be sure? ,forsinceyouwillnot answeryourself,I'll answer for you. But pray answer me as to this Point:IsthereanyMan thatbelievesdivinethings, andyetdeniesthe beingofaGod? ,
Mel. No,certainlythere'snone.
Soc, What painshaveItaken towrestthatword outofyou! <YouacknowledgethenthatIbelieve and teach the being of Deities. So that whether they be new or old, you stillown that I believe in Deities. AndtothispurposeyousworeinyourIn formation. . Now, ifIbelievethatthereareDei ties, I must necessarily suppose that there are Gods. Isnotitso? Yes,doubtless. Itakeyoursilence forconsent. ButtheseDeitiesorDemons,donot we takethemforGods, ortheChildrenofGods? Answer me.
? Mel. Yes,doubtless. *ThesePassagesaremoreimportantthanatfirstviewthey
seemtobe. Whoeverbelieves,thattherearesuchCreaturesas the Children of Gods, believes that there are Gods. The acknowledgingofAngelsimpliesthe beliefofGods; which isthethingthatSocratespointsto. TheseinferiorGodsare Children and Ministers,of the Supreme God, the God of Gods. N o w Socrates own'd an infinite number of these subordinate Beings, which he look'd upon as a continued Chain descend ing from the Throne of God to the Earth, and as the Bonds otCommercebetweenGodandMen,andtheMediumwhich unitesHeavenandEarth. ThisNotionofhismightbeta ken from Homer's mysterious Chain ; or, perhaps he had heard ofJacob'sLadder, thetopwereofreach'd toHeaven, whenthe footstoodupontheEarth;upon whichtheAn
gelsofGodascended anddescended,Ge>>. i8. u.
i. \ "? '? ' Soc.
?
? t
? Men.
* Socrates speaks thus in compliance with the Opinion of the People, who believ'd the Demons ow'd their Being to the Correspondence of the Gods with their Nymphs or W o men* Nowuponthisoccasion,itwasnothisbirfinesstoat tackthatError. Tiscertain,thatSocrateswasnotofthat Opibn ; for he had learn'dof"Pythagoras,that Demons or An gels and Hero's, that is, devout M e n and Saints, are the Sons of God, because they derive from him their Being, as Light owesit'sOriginaltoaluminousBody. AndinhisTlmtm^
speaking of the Generation of Angels or Demons, he fays, 'tis above the reach of human Nature. ? ? '-'?
jt6
Tfe ^poto^ cf Socrates?
Six. And by. consequence you acknowledge thatI
believe there are Demons, and that these Demons areGods? ,you havenow afairProofofmy Alle
gation-, namely, that you propos'd to m e a Riddle, in ordertodivert your selfto my cost* inalledg ing that I own'd no Gods, and yet believe there are Demons. ForifDemonsareChildrenof*God,or Bastards, if ye will, since they are laid to be born ofNymphs orotherWomen,whoistheMan that owns theChildrenof Gods,and yetdeniestheBe ing of the Gods themselves ? This is as great an Ab surdity, as ifonespoke ofColtsand Eaglets,and yetdeny'dtheBeingofHorsesorEagles. Sothat, Melitus,'tisaplainCase thatyoulaidthisAccusa tionagainstme, inordertomaketrialofmy Partsj orelseyoumustownthatyou havenolawfulpre tencefor citingme beforethisTribunal. For you willneverconvinceanyManwhohasonegrainof Sense, that the fame Man who believes that there are suchthings as relate tothe GodsandtoDe mons, will yet believe that there are neither De* mons,norGods,norHero's. That'saltogetherim possible. ButIneednotenlargemyDefencesbe fore you, Athenians : W h a t I have already laid will sufficetomakeitout,thatIamnotguiltyofIn
justice, and that Melitus's Charge is groundless.
TheHatrd AsforwhatItoldyouinthebeginning,about
andEn-yyofdrawingthe HatredoftheCitizensuponme-,you thePeople mav reftsatisfiedthatitisjustso:And that,ifIdie,
*w<<w *owem)rdeath,nott0Melitus,nortoAnytus,but tlhonest tothatSpiritofHatredandEnvythatreignsamong
the
? ? The Apology of Socrates!
27
the People, which has ruin'd so many honest Men, and will still continue to bring others to the like Fate. Foritisnottobehop'dthatmydeathwill concludetheTragedy. Wereitso,myLifewould be but too well spent.
But perhaps some will fay, Are notyou afhansd, Socrates,thatyou applydyourselftoastudy thatnow putsyou indangerofyourLife? To thisObjection
I'll give a satisfying Anlwer ; Whoever is the M a n thatputsittome, I mustneedstellhim, thathe's muchout,inbelievingthataManofanyValouror Vertue ought to regard the Considerations ofDeath orLife. The only thing he ought to mind in aU his Enterprises, is,to fee thathisActionsbejust,and suchasbecomeanhonestMan. Otherwiseitwou'd
follow from your Proposition, that the Demi gods whody'dattheSiegeofTroy,werealloferaim prudent, especially the Son of Thetis, who was in finitely more careful to avoid Shame than Death ; insomuch that his Mother seeing him impatient to kill//<? &>>*,accostedhim, asIremember,inthese
TermsjMy Son,ifyourevengethedeathofPatro-inthe2<l clus by killing Hector, you'll certainly die yourself. Sookoftlit NowherSon wassolittlemov'dbyherThreats,Iliads*
and contemn'd Death so much, that he was infi
nitely more afraid to live like a Coward, and not
resent thedeathofhisFriends. MayIdieimmedi-
ntely,fd\dhQ,providing Ido butpunish theMurderer ofPatroclus;providing IdonotlieexposedtoCon
tempts and accounted an useless Burden to the Earth. ? Now, what do ye think ? Does he stand upon the
consideration of Danger and Death ? It is a cer
tainTruth,Athenians,thateveryMan who has
pick'd out tohimselfan'honourablePost, orisput
into it by his Superiors, ought to stand up steddily,s,"me {i
;
maugre allthe Danger thatsurrounds him, without XZ/ed consideringeither Death orwhat isyetmoreterri-thanDeaths rible, but bending his whole Care to avoid shame.
SothatIshoudbeguiltyofamonstrousCrime,
if, after the faithful Services I have done, in expo- ? r. j: . '; :. ,*,. . . . ;. :. \ ? sing
? ? J M .
t o a v o i d t h o s e E v i l s t h a t I d o n o t k n o w -, a n d w h i c h , foranythingIknow,mayreallybegood. ButI shall always dread and avoid those Evils which I certainly know to be such.
Now, after all the solicitations of Anytus, in re presenting to you the necessity of bringing m e to a Trial,andnowthatIamuponit,thatyoucannot dispense with my Life, lestyour Sons who areal ready so much addicted to my Doctrine, should be entirely corrupted : Supposing, I say, that after all these Remonstrances, you shou'd say to me, Sveraiez,
it
The Apohgy of Socrates? i
fingmy LifeIbofteninthePostsIwasprefer'dto
by our Generals, at Poridoea, Amphipolis^ and De/i-
*<<? ,Ishouldnowbe sotransportedwiththefearof
Death, or any other Danger, as to abandon the Post
in which God has now placed me, enjoyning me to
Ipendmy life-timeinthestudyofPhilosophy,in
examiningmy selfandothers. Thatindeedwould
be a criminal Desertion, and wou'dJustly occasion
theArraignment ofmebeforethisTribunal,asbe
ing aprofligateMan thatowns no Gods, disobeys
an Oracle, tears Death, and believes himself Wise.
For to fear Death, is nothing else, but to believe W << a >v the o n e ' s s e l f t o b e w i s e w h e n t h e y a r e n o t ; a n d t o f a n -
fr"*t fiethattheyknowwhattheydonotknow. Inef- . - fe&nog0(jyknowsDeath;noBodycantell,but jfht]x itmaybethegreatestBenefitofMankind;andyet greyestBe-Men areafraidon't,asifthey knew certainlythat meptojustitWere the greatestofEvils. Now isnotthisa
*^"- scandalous Ignorance, for M e n to fanfie they k n o w what they do not know *
For m y part I differ in that Point from all other Men, and ifin any thing I seem more wise than they, it is in this, That, as I do not know what passes in the Regions below, so I do not pretend
P>fi6e&- toknowit. AllthatIknowisthis,Thatthere's mcetoournothingmore criminal orscandalous,thantobe
^TZ]" " Sutity of an unjust thing, and to disobey those who *TwW asebetterthanwe,orplac'daboveus,whetherGods *>>. *shame-orMen. SothatIshallneyerdreadorendeavour
,'~: we
? ? the Apology,of Socrates? ajj
we havenoregard tothe AllegationsofAnytus: We dismiss and absolveyou, butuponthisCondi tion, that you shall give over the proper suit of your Philosophy and wonted Enquiries -,and in case you be found guilty of a relapse, you shall certainly die. Ifyoucastmy AbsolutionupontheseTerms,' I answer you, Athenians, That I honour and love you, but that I'll rather obey God than you ? ,and that while I live 111 never abandon the exercise of Philosophy, in admonishing and checking you ac cordingtomy usualCustom,andaddressingmy self to every one I meet in this fashion : Sinceyou areso boneftaMan, andaCitizenofthefamousestCityin the World, equally renown*d for Wisdom and Valour; are notyou afbairidto make ityour wholebusiness to amassRiches,and topurchaseGlory,CreditandHo' nour;andatthesametime toflight thetreasures of Prudence, Truth, and Wisdom, and not to think of
improving your Soul to the highest Perfection it isca
pable of ? If any M a n denies this to be his Cafe, and maintains that he minds the Concerns of hisSoul,*&*? is*
I will not take his word ior't-, but I'llinterrogate,t^vLa, examine and confutehim;ifIfindthatheisnotaself<<? <- trulyVertuous,butmakes ashewofbeingsuch,I'll>><<<<6<<* m a k e h i m a s h a m ' d , a n d t w i t h i m w i t h h i s i g n o r a n c e , "f" inpreferringvileand perishingthings,tothosewhich
are infinitely more valuable, and will never part from us.
InthisfashionWillIdiscoursetheYoungand the O l d , t h e C i t i z e n s a n d F o r e i g n e r s ? , b u t a b o v e a l l , y o u
Citizens,forwhomIammostconcern'd. For,be itknowntoyou,thatIamcommissionsbyGodso
to do ; and I'm fully persuaded that your City ne
ver enjoy'd so great an Advantage, as this my con tinuedServicetoGod. Allmybusinessistoper suade you, both Young and Old, that you ought not todoatsomuchuponyourBody,yourRiches,and otherthingsyou arefondof,butshouldloveyour^Xod
Souls. Ievertellyou,thatVertuedoesnotflowthingsare from Riches; but on the contrary, that Riches*hefroduel
spring? fVertue-
, .
? ? ^b
the Apology of Socrates.
