You are a member of the very large jury that has heard Socrates’ defense of the charges against him. You and your fellow jurors are now deliberating about Socrates’ fate. Not only have you heard his entire defense, but you were present when Socrates discussed the nature of piety with Euthyphro, so you have a sense of Socrates’ method of questioning. You were also with Glaucon when Socrates discussed the Allegory of the Cave. All of the other jury members are enraged at Socrates and want to convict him of Meletus’ charge of corrupting the youth. You are the lone holdout.
In addition to an introduction and a conclusion, you have three tasks in your essay; you may use both Euthyphro, Apology, Crito, and the Allegory of the Cave in all three tasks (although Crito takes place after the trial, we get the same Socrates in that dialogue that we do in Euthyphro and Apology, so you can use Crito to support your claims about Socrates – his two principles of justice, his opinion of the “many,” and his love of Athens) :
First, use the texts to represent the views of your fellow jurors. Why are they so angry at Socrates? What danger do they think he poses to the citizens of Athens, particularly the young?
Second, respond to the reasons presented by your fellow jurors by explaining why they do not justify a guilty verdict. Consider: are “the many” automatically correct in their views?
Third, present reasons for thinking that Socrates actually benefits Athens and her citizens, rather than harming them.
You should write your essay in the first person, as an address to your fellow jurors. So, for the first task, you might begin with something like this: “My fellow jurors: here are the reasons you have given for convicting Socrates,” and then state those reasons. (Why might your fellow jurors agree with Meletus that Socrates corrupts the youth? Why would Socrates be a threat?)
Next, respond to those reasons. You might start this section with: “Let me explain why I am not persuaded by any of the reasons you give,” and then address each reason.
Last, make the strongest possible case that Socrates not only does not deserve to be convicted, but that he is a positive benefit to Athens and her citizens. Here you might use Crito and Apology to provide textual evidence of how Socrates views Athens and her citizens and how he helps them. You can also think about the Allegory of the Cave – who does Socrates symbolize in the Allegory, and how is that person regarded by others in the cave?
Structure of your paper: you do NOT need to label these sections, and its better if you don’t. My reason for setting them out here is to help you see what you need to include in the paper. If your paper is well written, I will be able to tell that you have included all of this without labels for the sections.
Introduction: Here you want to set up what is to come for the reader. Imagine you are giving your fellow jurors a brief summary of what you are going to say in the following sections. For example: “I understand you are angry at Socrates for the following reasons” (then briefly summarize them). “However, I will show that your reasons are not good enough to convict Socrates because…” (then briefly summarize where you think the jury goes wrong). “In addition, I think Socrates is a positive benefit to Athens because…” (briefly summarize these reasons).
In other words, your Introduction should give a brief (one or two sentence) summary of each of the three tasks/sections of your paper:
Views of your fellow jurors
Analysis/response to reasons
Socrates is a Benefit
Conclusion: Here you want to reiterate what you’ve said (without being too repetitive) and say why your fellow jurors should be persuaded. What is at stake with the conviction of Socrates?
