scribe his family in some detail -- including hissons. Here, he seems to be appealing to pity in a very subtle way.Speaking about his children, he asks the jury “punish them...if they seemto care about riches or anything, more than about virtue; or if they...aresomething when they are really nothing.” Once again, he seems to beinstructing or teaching the jury about his beliefs. Socrates uses reason,once again, to convince himself that death is not an evil. “...the state ofdeath is one of two things: either a dead man wholly ceases to be andloses all consciousness or, as we are told, it is a change and a migration ofthe soul to another place.” Socrates goes on to say that, since neither ofthose two states of being can be bad, death shouldn’t be feared. Hisphilosophy of reason allows him to look at death in a way that he doesnot have to be afraid of it. Socrates believes in holding on to his principle regardless of theconsequences, even if they involve death. Concern for himself is notnearly as important as the pursuit of the good, the true, and the just. As aresult, it is far better to suffer injustice than, through ignorance, to cause it.Justice seems to be the prevalent theme, since this dialogue deals with theinjustice against Socrates. One inconsistency is that in Crito he seemed universally opposed toviolating the law, while in the Apology there seem to be exceptions to thisbelief. For example, he opposed the government actions (the law of theState) on two occasions. The speech that Socrates gives reflects the indignation he feels overinjustice that he has received. However, a theme of courage in the face ofdeath seems to be emphasized. Also, the point about staying true tooneself and beliefs, and the search for truth by way of reason is a policywe should all adopt. CRITO Persons of the Dialogue: Socrates and Crito Scene: The Prison of Socrates SUMMARY This dialogue takes place in the jail where Soc...
