“Did Socrates Commit Suicide?” Opinion Essay
After reading this essay I believe that you the reader will be convinced beyond a reasonable doubt that Socrates did commit suicide. I will have convinced you that that is the very truth. I will draw upon three sources to come to my conclusion. One will be that during his trial and his sentencing, Socrates showed no attitude or feelings of remorse. His choices of words seemed to be that of a man who wanted to be convicted and put to death, then that of one seeking mercy and wanting to live. Another is that Socrates had the opportunity to live if he seek mercy from the jury of 501 by pleading guilty and by rebutting the death sentence with one of exile from Athens. Finally, that Socrates did not want to die. Socrates was given an opportunity to escape and choose not to. With these three points, I will convince you that Socrates knew and full willingly chose to commit suicide.
During the trial, Socrates lets the jury know of his opinion towards death. He states that those who fear death are ignorant. That death can’t be avoided and most people fear it but have no idea about it. One might think that this may not be the best time to talk about this issue. After he has been convicted and the jury has to vote for the death penalty or not then it would be understandable to discuss the matter. The fact that he decides to say this now doesn’t seem to help his case, nor does insulting the beliefs of many of the jurors on the matter of death. Is this really going to help Socrates? Of course not. Socrates in that statement alone tells the whole jury that he is not afraid of what they will do to him, even if it be death.
After Socrates is found guilty, the prosecution announces their penalty, which is death. Socrates is now given the chance to offer an alternative penalty, which then lets the jury decide between them. It was normal for someone who had been convicted of death to offer a counter penalty of exile from Athens...