Plato’s Phaedo Essay

After reading the Plato’s Phaedo, I would like to write about my understanding of cyclical argument. Socrates mentions an ancient theory holding that just as the souls of the dead in the underworld come from those living in this world, the living souls come back from those of the dead.  He uses this theory as the inspiration for this argument. Firstly, opposites come from opposites, for example, if something comes to be just, it comes to be just from having not been just; if something comes to be beautiful, it does so from having not been beautiful; if something comes to be large, it comes to be large from having been small. A main question that arises in regard to this argument is what Socrates means by “opposites”.  I can see two different ways in which this term is used in reference to the opposed states he mentions. First, it is used for comparatives, and second, I see “being alive” and “being dead” as opposites, but this pair is rather different from comparative states. When opposites come to be from opposites, there is a process by which this occurs. I see this like a process of growing, walking, and sleeping.  When it comes to death, I absolutely agree with the statement that death is the opposite of life, and things come to be dead from having been alive. Opposite to dying there is a process of coming to life, if something comes to life, it must have existed before birth. Since “being alive” and “being dead” are opposite states, and “dying” and “coming-to-life” are the two opposite processes between these states, coming-to-life must balance out dying.  Therefore, everything that dies must come back to life again. It only shows to me that there must be something before birth, not that the soul exists after death. Nothing comes from nothing. I do not get any understanding of what the subject of change is like: why think it is anything like my soul? In the end, this first argument only complements the second.

The myth about afterlife has a deep meaning. My position in relation to the reading here is if the soul is immortal, my actions in this life will have consequences that will last forever. For me, it is the utmost importance to care for my soul and live properly. This myth is a way of summarizing and contextualizing many of the themes in the dialogue in a very attractive and readable way. The main focus of the myth lies in the contrast between the worlds as people know it and the true surface of the earth, which is in every way more pure and beautiful than what we know. According to the myth, people who live on the true surface can speak directly with the gods and can see the sun and moon as they truly are. Ancient Greeks are the great example of this. At the end of Socrates’ telling I discover that the most important for me is to keep myself in a good spirit as I work to improve my soul in this life.

The scene in the end of the Phaedo, in which Plato describes how Socrates dies by poisoning from hemlock, is moving and impressive. It closes the Phaedo in rich and dramatic details, and it gives me the scene of witnessing directly an actual event, vividly and accurately described, the death of the historical Socrates.  The depiction of Socrates’ death that closes the Phaedo is rich in dramatic detail. I find challenging Plato’s description of hemlock-poisoning, because in fact, the symptoms would have been much more violent than the relatively gentle death he depicts.

For me, the Phaedo is a great example of distinctive views about the nature of knowledge, reality, and the soul, as well as the implications of these views for human ethical and political life.

 

Work Cited

Plato. Phaedo. The Last Hours of Socrates. Translated by Benjamin Jowett. October 29, 2008. Print.

 

The terms offer and acceptance. (2016, May 17). Retrieved from

[Accessed: March 28, 2024]

"The terms offer and acceptance." freeessays.club, 17 May 2016.

[Accessed: March 28, 2024]

freeessays.club (2016) The terms offer and acceptance [Online].
Available at:

[Accessed: March 28, 2024]

"The terms offer and acceptance." freeessays.club, 17 May 2016

[Accessed: March 28, 2024]

"The terms offer and acceptance." freeessays.club, 17 May 2016

[Accessed: March 28, 2024]

"The terms offer and acceptance." freeessays.club, 17 May 2016

[Accessed: March 28, 2024]

"The terms offer and acceptance." freeessays.club, 17 May 2016

[Accessed: March 28, 2024]
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