Plato

The Apology

• A man who was good for anything or not to calculate the chance of living or dying. He only consider whether in doing anything he is doing right or wrong - part of a good man or a bad.
• I am convinced that I never wronged another, I will assuredly not wrong myself. I will not say of myself that I deserve any evil, or propose any penalty. Why should I? Because I’m afraid of the penalty of death, which Miletus proposes? When I do not know whether death is a good or an evil, why should I propose a penalty which would certainly be an evil?
• For if I tell you that to do as you say would be a disobedience to the God, and therefore that I cannot hold my tongue, you will not believe that I am serious; and if I say again that daily to discourse about virtue, and of those other things about which you hear me examining myself and others, is the greatest, good man, and that the unexamined life is not worth living, you are less likely to believe me.
• Nor do I now repent of the style of my defense; I would rather die, having spoken after my manner, then speak in your manner and live.
• The difficulty, my friends, is not to avoid death, but to avoid unrighteousness; for that runs faster than death.
• If you think that by killing man, you can prevent someone from censoring your evil lives, you’re mistaken; that is not a way of escape which is either possible or honorable; the easiest and best way is not to be disabling others, but by improving yourselves.

# I.d. Meno - without anyone teaching him will he recover his knowledge for himself, if he’s only asked questions?