Plato's Phaedo: On the Soul - Part 2 (89c to End)

Details

Plato's Phaedo concludes the dramatic account of Socrates' final hours, where he engages close friends in profound discussions about the mysteries of life and death before drinking the hemlock.

Alongside the Republic, the Phaedo is one of Plato's most philosophically rich dialogues from his middle period. It introduces an exploration of the Theory of Forms, presents four arguments for the soul's immortality, and offers compelling reasons to embrace the philosophical life.

One striking claim is that believing in the soul’s immortality encourages a virtuous life. In fact, our pursuit of goodness may already imply an intuitive belief in the soul’s eternal nature.

As this dialogue is more lengthy, allocate sufficient time to read it in its entirety.

Part 2: Responses, Final Argument, Myth, and Socrates’ Death (~89c-118a)

Content:
• Socrates addresses Simmias and Cebes’ objections, emphasizing the importance of fearless inquiry (~89c-91c).
• He introduces the Final Argument (~95a-107b), which uses the theory of Forms to argue that the soul, as the principle of life, cannot admit death and is thus immortal.
• The dialogue shifts to a mythological account of the afterlife (~107c-115a), describing the soul’s journey and the cosmic geography.
• The final section (~115a-118a) depicts Socrates’ last moments, his farewell to his friends, and his death by hemlock, one of the most poignant scenes in Western philosophy.
ASSIGNED READING:
• https://www.platonicfoundation.org/media/2023/01/platos-phaedo-english-translation-by-david-horan-1.pdf
Audio https://librivox.org/phaedo-by-plato/

OPTIONAL MEDIA
• Philosophy by the Book podcast http://philosophybythebook.libsyn.com/philosophy-by-the-book-episode-18-platos-phaedo