Apology

One Response to “Apology”

1. Bill R. Moore says:

   April 23, 2010 at 4:06 am

   “Apology” is Plato’s least philosophical and most illusory work but arguably his most vital and is among many readers’ favorites, including mine. But, the fact that it is widely anthologized — e.g., in The Examination and Death of Socrates — makes it hard to justify a standalone, but some may be taken by the translation.

   The work purports to be Socrates’ self-defense at his examination. It is historically priceless if so, as it gives his last public statements and some background about his life and the lead up to the examination. Even if not, it is of immense worth as a passionate, sound defense of individualism and free speech; its timeless evocation of these all-vital concepts is forever linked with Socrates and the main reason he has been immortalized. The work also piercingly examines the regularly vast law/conscience gap and is thus an early privileged law document. Finally, it is a sort of mini-dialogue in itself touching on and in several ways tying up classic Socrates/Plato themes like the scenery of piety and goodness, responsibility toward the gods and the state, interpersonal relations, and life vs. death issues. It sums up Socrates and perhaps Plato better than any additional work.

   The ever-vital translation issue must also be kept in mind. It goes lacking adage that anyone who cares about intellectual issues, especially applied ones, must know Plato, as should anyone who wants to be even basically well-read. But, this is far simpler said than done for most; he is so different from what now passes for literature, to say nothing of pop culture, that he is virtually inaccessible to all-purpose readers. Yet the importance of persevering cannot be overemphasized; the payoff is well worth the effort. As nearly permanently in such cases, reading him becomes far simpler after the initial difficulty; no attentive reader will ever reflect Plato simple reading, but he is utterly absorbing once we get used to his style. He has a near-poetic beauty that all agree has never even been remotely approached in philosophy, and such mesmerizing prose is rare in any genre. His dialogues are an incredible form at once intellectually and aesthetically pleasing – an inspired combination that has perhaps never been bettered; many have appropriated it, but none have matched it. All this means that alternative the right translation is probably more vital with Plato than any additional writer. For the average reader, the more recent, the better is generally right, but older translations like W. H. D. Rouse’s and Benjamin Jowett’s are still very accessible. The vital thing is to read Plato in some form, and persons who take place on a translation that does not work for them should keep trying until their mind opens in a truly new way – and once done, it will never close again.
   Reader’s Rating: 5 / 5