Socrates: Accept Fate & Embrace Death with Peace - Essay Sample

Socrates' Stoic Acceptance of His Fate

In Crito, Socrates argues that he should not escape from prison and instead accept the decision made by the state upon his life. Socrates is at peace and does not seem worried about the impending danger of losing his life as is expected. He is okay with the decision that has been made and is waiting for his death. The idea of death does not scare him as it would any other man in his place, which depicts his satisfaction in the happenings of his life (Plato, Crito page 1). Socrates argument is that he believes in living an honourable life and not repaying evil done to him with other crimes and by escaping prison, he thought he would be harming the city of Athens that had done him harm.

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Socrates refuses to listen to his friend who wants to help him escape, and his reasons are one that allowing his friends to help him avoid would get them into trouble with the state. If his friends helped him escape, they would be subject to losing their citizenship and their property in the process. Socrates also finds it wrong to involve other people in his escape, such as paying the informers to allow his escape. Another reason Socrates has against escaping prison is that he does not care what the majority of people think about him. He only cares about what the state says, which he believes has the required knowledge to judge his fate and not the people who are encouraging him to escape. Socrates believes Crito and the rest who are trying to help him do not understand the situation he is in and so, therefore, are not in the best position to push for him to escape.

Socrates' Refusal to Listen to Crito's Pleas

Another reason Socrates does not want to escape is that he believes he owes it to the state not to try and oppose them. When he talks about what the state’s reaction to his attempt to escape would be, he shows how the state allowed him to be born and grow in their country. He says the state allowed for his parents to marry and they bore him, as well as raising him well and teaching him all the necessary skills he would need to cope with life there. The state gave an option to walk away when he was of age if he did not like the justice system or any other aspect of the land but his choosing to stay meant he was comfortable with it. His choice to stay meant he was in a sort of contract with them that he should respect.

The state had sought Socrates in the making of laws, and he openly opposed exile as a punishment and supported death instead. He sat down and agreed to the rules and the laws allow one to either obey or prove to the state that a particular law is wrong in a certain way, but by Socrates escaping he will have disobeyed laws he had willingly made. Escaping would be ridiculous. Socrates argues that by escaping, he would be warding off evil with evil. He would be paying the state back for their intent to kill him with an evil act of escaping, which he found dishonouring of him as a man.

Critique of Crito's Arguments

Crito argues that Socrates should escape so that he can continue to raise his children and give them a better life. I find this claim inadequate because by escaping; Socrates would have to move away from Athens with his children and even stay in hiding for a while because he will have run illegally, which would not give his children a good life. They would have to live with knowing that their father is a truant, and they cannot explore their family roots because he is a wanted man in their home country. Crito says that there is no difficulty in escaping and that Socrates could be loved and appreciated in other places except Athens, where he chooses to be loyal to (Plato, Crito page 3). This claim is selfish because Socrates has been born and raised in Athens and has never even left to explore, which means he loves his country and being home. Starting a new life with new people in a new place at his old age would be difficult, and the few years remaining would not be worth it. Wouldn’t a man rather die in his own home country?

I believe Socrates owes it to the state and even to himself to follow the judgement and decision that has been passed to him regardless of how bad it looks or sounds. Being the good and honourable man he is, he would not be able to live with the guilt of having defied the law which would then make the need to escape unworthy and unfruitful. After all, there is no point in living if you are not proud of the decisions you have made or if you have to keep hiding as a consequence of those decisions.