Crito

In this essay Plato is writing about Socrates who has been sentenced to death. Socrates is visited by his friend Crito who is trying to persuade Socrates to escape prison. Socrates says that he cannot escape unless doing so would be just and right. He says that " I cannot abandon the arguments I used to make in times past just because this situation has arisen: They look the same to me as before, and I respect and honor them as much as ever." After saying this Socrates and Crito expand their discussion and Socrates tries to use reason to determine whether the action of escaping prison is right or wrong.

In the beginning of the conversation Crito explains "People who do not know you and me will believe that I might have saved you if I had been willing to give money, but that I did not care. Now can there be a worse disgrace than this - that I would be thought to value money more than the life of a friend? For the many will not be persuaded that I wanted you to escape and that you refused. " Here Crito is trying to explain that he himself would be accused of not trying to help Socrates escape and of valuing money more than valuing his friend because no one will believe that Socrates would willingly face execution. Crito here is arguing that people will see him as an egoist, because he would be doing what is in his own self interest.

During this part of the conversation Crito also argues that Socrates' actions are unjust because" No man should bring children into the world who is unwilling to persevere to the end in their nurture and education." He argues that Socrates will be abandoning the care of his children and they will be raised as orphans are and this would be unjust to his children. This argument could be related to utilitarianism because Crito is talking about the consequences of the actions and which action would end in a greater moral consequence.

In the next part of the conversation Socrates talks about how Crito's arguments are of...