Essay About Best Students And Last Day Of Socrates

History of Philosophy
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Philosophy is a vast field. It examines and probes many different fields. Virtue, morality,
immortality, death, and the difference between the psyche (soul) and the soma (body) are just a few of the
many different topics which can be covered under the umbrella of philosophy. Philosophers are supposed
to be experts on all these subjects. The have well thought out opinions, and they are very learned people.
Among the most revered philosophers of all time was Socrates. Living around the 5th century B.C.,
Socrates was among the first philosophers who wasnt a sophist, meaning that he never felt that he was
wise for he was always in the pursuit of knowledge. Unfortunately, Socrates was put to death late in his
life. One of his best students, Plato, however, recorded what had occurred on that last day of Socrates
life. On that last day of his life, Socrates made a quite powerful claim. He claimed that philosophy was
merely practice for getting used to death and dying.
At first, the connection between philosophy and death is not clear. However, as we unravel
Socrates argument backing up his claim, the statement makes a lot of sense. In order for Philosophers to
examine their world accurately and learn the truth accurately, they must remove them selves of all
distractions. These not only include physical distractions, but they include mental distractions and bodily
distractions as well. Philosophers must get used to viewing and examining the world with out any senses.
Senses merely hinder and obscure the truth. Sight for example can be fooled easily with optical illusions
which occur normally in nature. Sound can be very distracting as well when a philosopher is trying to
concentrate. All of these cloud the judgement, and must therefore be detached from the soul. Socrates
argues that philosophers must view the world around them with their souls in order to accurately learn
about it. However, by detaching their souls from all bodily functions, philosophers may as well be in an
induced state of death. In mortem,