Slaying The Minotaur

5 Pages 1250 Words

On Slaying the Minotaur

Plato’s “Phaedo” discusses many human difficulties and attempts to discover ways to overcome such difficulties. The most important deficiency is the human condition the “Phaedo” deals with concerns death and the continuation of the spirit into an afterlife. The plot centers around Socrates and two of his fourteen students who are present named Cebes and Simmias. Socrates, throughout the dialogue, undertakes a task attempting to deny the time where people are most human, the point of death. Socrates tries to show his students an avenue to salvation through a philosophic life. This essay outlines Socrates arguments attempting to overcome and solve the human fear of a final death.
Socrates willingly accepts death, but Cebes and Simmias are unhappy about his death. The two don’t understand death as Socrates does; they are not on his level. Cebes and Simmias worry they will die without the comprehension of death Socrates possesses. They are emotionally attached to Socrates and fear death. Socrates must wean both Simmias and Cebes from their attachment to him and to show them not to fear death. Therefore, Socrates must set an example for not only those two, but also for others who fear death and he declares, “I should make my defense against these charges just as in the Law of court” (63B). To calm those fears Socrates gives a speech declaring that at death the Soul completely separates from the body. Socrates puts emphasis on the soul because the body is dying; he recognizes the body and raises the soul. To accomplish his mission Socrates employs three arguments, that of contraries and that from recollection, followed by his “second sailing”.
In the argument of contraries Socrates states, “let’s investigate whether it’s necessary for whatever has some contrary to be from no where else but from its own contrary” (70E). He uses the examples of opposites such as little to...