{"product_id":"why-socrates-died-dispelling-the-myths-9780393065275","title":"Why Socrates Died: Dispelling the Myths","description":"\u003cbr\u003eAware of these myths, Robin Waterfield has examined the actual Greek sources and presents here a new Socrates, in which he separates the legend from the man himself. As Waterfield recounts the story, the charges of impiety and corrupting the youth of Athens were already enough for a death sentence, but the prosecutors accused him of more. They asserted that Socrates was not just an atheist and the guru of a weird sect but also an elitist who surrounded himself with politically undesirable characters and had mentored those responsible for defeat in the Peloponnesian War. Their claims were not without substance, for Plato and Xenophon, among Socrates' closest companions, had idolized him as students, while Alcibiades, the hawkish and notoriously self-serving general, had brought Athens to the brink of military disaster. In fact, as Waterfield perceptively shows through an engrossing historical narrative, there was a great deal of truth, from an Athenian perspective, in these charges.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe trial was, in part, a response to troubled times--Athens was reeling from a catastrophic war and undergoing turbulent social changes--and Socrates' companions were unfortunately direct representatives of these troubles. Their words and actions, judiciously sifted and placed in proper context, not only serve to portray Socrates as a flesh-and-blood historical figure but also provide a good lens through which to explore both the trial and the general history of the period.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eUltimately, the study of these events and principal figures allows us to finally strip away the veneer that has for so long denied us glimpses of the real Socrates. \u003ci\u003eWhy Socrates Died\u003c\/i\u003e is an illuminating, authoritative account of not only one of the defining periods of Western civilization but also of one of its most defining figures.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Hardcover\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e W. W. Norton \u0026amp; Company\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 06\/01\/2009\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780393065275\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 253\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 1.05lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 9.30h x 6.20w x 1.10d\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eReview Citations: \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003ci\u003eLibrary Journal\u003c\/i\u003e 02\/15\/2009 pg. 117\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eBooklist\u003c\/i\u003e 04\/01\/2009 pg. 6\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/i\u003e 03\/30\/2009 pg. 39\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eChoice\u003c\/i\u003e 01\/01\/2010\u003cbr\u003e","brand":"Robin Waterfield","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":36636854124700,"sku":"9780393065275","price":40.79,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0473\/0804\/6492\/products\/img_c28dc619-e3c3-44a2-80ab-630d6f102c80.jpg?v=1603843160","url":"https:\/\/pastforward.org\/products\/why-socrates-died-dispelling-the-myths-9780393065275","provider":"Past Forward","version":"1.0","type":"link"}