The trial of Socrates

Stone, I.F. (Isidor Feinstein) (1907-1989)

ISBN 10: 0316817589 / ISBN 13: 9780316817585

Published by Boston : Little, Brown and Co., 1988

About this Item

Fine cloth copy in a very good, slightly edge-nicked and dust-dulled dust-wrapper, now mylar-sleeved. Remains particularly well-preserved overall; tight, bright, clean and strong. Physical description: xi, 282 pages ; 24cm. Subjects: Socrates -- Trials, litigation, etc. Philosophy, Ancient -- Athens (Greece). 1 Kg.

Seller Inventory # 300810

Bibliographic Details

• Title: The trial of Socrates
• Publisher: Boston : Little, Brown and Co.
• Publication Date: 1988
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0316817589
• ISBN 13: 9780316817585
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition: First Edition, Second Printing.
• Weight: 1 kilogram

About this title

Synopsis

Combines classical scholarship with techniques of modern investigative journalism in an attempt to unravel the mystery behind the trial and conviction of Athens' most prominent philosopher

Reviews

How could ancient Athens, a society that prized and protected free speech, have condemned Socrates to death? Readily, in Stone's estimation. The philosopher we meet on these pages is an arrogant, bullying elitist who welcomed death and did his best to antagonize the jury that sentenced him. Socrates's mock modesty and aloofness irked his interrogators. His open disdain for democracy did not play well in a city-state recently convulsed by temporary throwbacks to dictatorship. Stone, the famed, feisty political journalist, spent over a decade learning classical Greek and delving into primary sources. He not only exposes the social snobbery lurking behind Socrates's dismissal of Athenian democracy, but also attacks the class prejudice underlying his hostility toward the Sophists, teachers who challenged the institution of slavery. In this iconoclastic portrait of a secular saint, Socrates emerges as a thoroughly dislikable, albeit superior, man who upheld unpopular truths.
Copyright 1987 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Since his retirement in 1971, former muckraker Stone has turned classicist. He is especially fascinated by Socrates's trial because it represents a "black mark" for the free and democratic Athens that he admires. Stone argues that while the Athenian verdict cannot be defended, it can be understood: Socrates was an anti-democratic reactionary whose philosophy posed a genuine threat to liberal ideals. Stone's portrait of Socrates sharply contrasts with the popular hagiographies and will stimulate a wide range of readers, although specialists will find much to argue with. Recommended for general collections.Richard Hogan, Southeastern Massachusetts Univ., North Dartmouth
Copyright 1987 Reed Business Information, Inc.