The Apology of Socrates: Adapted for the Contemporary Reader

De: Plato, James Harris

Narrado por: Michael T Downey

The Apology of Socrates, by Plato, is the dialogue that presents the speech of legal self-defense, which Socrates presented at his trial for impiety and corruption, in 399 BC.

• Specifically, The Apology of Socrates is a defense against the charges of “corrupting the youth” and “not believing in the same gods as the city, but in other gods which are novel” to Athens.
• The Apology of Socrates is the dialogue that depicts the trial, written by Plato who details the final days of the philosopher great Socrates.
• This book has been carefully adapted into Modern English to allow for best enjoyment.

©2017 James Harris (P)2017 James Harris

I was unaware Socrates was this level of troll....

Good god, this book was freaking hilarious. Slightly depressing knowing how Socrates ended his life shortly after this happened, but the amount of burns he lays down before going out is simply wonderful. This is the second book I have heard from Michael Downey and I think he did head and shoulders better in this one, which is saying something as I did enjoy his last work as well. If your considering this book I would highly recommend giving it a try.

I received this book in return for a fair and honest review.

Democracy murders Socrates.

What is the danger of straight democracy? Mob rule. See what happens to the man of ability under the government of men rather than a government of law. See why a constitutional republic is better than pure democracy. Spoiler alert. They vote to murder Socrates for pestering them with the truth and calling out their ‘fake news’ sensibilities.

A cornerstone of Western thought and a cautionary tale about the democratization of morality and truth.

Narrator did a great job.

I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

Punished for free thought

Truly one of the sadder parts of recorded history. Socrates is persecuted for thinking differently than most, and helping others to do the same. If you are history buff or just someone who enjoys short listens, this is a good pick.

I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

Good!

Fantastic narration for this classic!

I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review. The fact that I was gifted this book had no influence over my opinion of it

Timeless youth

Nothing says the timeless plight of youth and enlightenment like the oldest and most conservative philosopher who shunned subjectivity and believed in a ruling class. Wait, what? Nothing about that sentence makes any sense. And yet here we are.

This contemporary version of The Apology of Socrates has all of the themes of a Summer of Love level of social disruption. Rejection of the state, rejection of the gods of your parents, corrupting the youth, attacking the lazy establishment, certainty of your own enlightenment, wit above decorum, and speaking truth to power. Socrates here is a one man rebellion. A Single revolutionary standing up to one of the most powerful governments in history and winning.

Without question, Socrates wins all rational arguments. However, he does not win his life which is also sadly common to revolutionaries. Established power does indeed have a tendency to be rather powerful.

This book was given to me for free at my request and I provided this voluntary review.

👍🏻

This was wonderfully done and well delivered. The narration pace bothered me. I sped it up and it was much better. The narrator did a great job. Even if it was a bit slow.

This audiobook was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review.

Interesting Listen

The Greek mythos was never covered in my formal education, so I was very interested to explore this little piece of history. The explanation and argument that Socrates makes at his trial are both cogent and reasonable...and of course threatening to those who sit in power and hold opposing views. This rendition was accessible to modern ears and very easy to follow.

The narration is well done with a smooth and measured delivery.

I was voluntarily provided this free review copy audiobook by the author, narrator, or publisher.

Interesting Insight into Plato's Mind

Where does The Apology of Socrates: Adapted for the Contemporary Reader rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

For this type of thing, this ranks very highly for me. It's a quick listen at under an hour and I actually sped it up a bit too. It's cool to get a snapshot of someone's mindset so long ago directly from them, and the nuggets of wisdom within make this a highly recommended book.

What about Michael T Downey’s performance did you like?

The narrator is very clear - which is why I could speed it up and it was fine.

Any additional comments?

I was voluntarily provided this free review copy audiobook by the author, narrator, or publisher.

Apologia

Written by Plato, from the perspective of Socrates this is an 'apologia' - a reasoned defense of a position or action - not an apology - saying sorry -for holding those positions. Socrates is not recanting or apologising for holding his views, but is defending himself and explaining his positions. With modern language rarely using apology/apologia in this context it isn't immediately clear.

The short work covers the speeches given by Socrates at his trial (2500 year old spoiler: he is found guilty and executed), against the charges of corrupting the youth and atheism. The book covers his defense, his response to the verdict and his final statements before execution

As with all we know of Socrates, it comes as hearsay via Plato and is told in a question and answer 'Socratic method'. It is interesting and well reasoned, if short. A great way to get a good overview of Socrates, his style (or Plato's style, at least) and what he taught. Overall well worth the short investment of time.

Narration by Michael T Downey is fine. He is clear and well paced. I would have liked a little more effort in clarifying the back-and-forth questioning between multiple people - to keep it clear who was talking. At times he modified his voice to be a different 'character', but other times he didn't. Or minimally did. Overall, narration is good but nothing exciting. It does what it needs to, but doesn't go beyond that.

I was voluntarily provided this free review copy audiobook by the author, narrator, or publisher.

Classic

Wonderfully done.
Reasons I enjoyed this audio book:
Witty, Wonderful character, Page-turner, Original, Realistic, Easy-to-read, Entertaining, Twisted, Informative.
This Audio book was given to me for free at my request from the publisher, author or narrator and I provided this unbiased voluntary review.