These four dialogues present the trial, the imprisonment, and the execution of Socrates who his friend Phaedo said was “the wisest, best, and most righteous person I have ever known.” In the Euthyphro, Socrates approaches the court where he will be tried on charges of atheism and corrupting the young. On the way he meets Euthyphro, an expert in religious matters. Just as people today question the relationship between religion and ethics, Socrates challenges Euthyphro’s claim that ethics should be based on religion.
On trial for his life, Socrates presents his own defense in the Apology. He explains why he has devoted his life to challenging and examining the most powerful and important people, a process that has generated great resentment and has led to his indictment. He insists that instead of being punished, he should be rewarded for his service to his fellow citizens.
Socrates fails in his attempt to avoid conviction and is sentenced to death, but his friend Crito has bribed the guards and offers him a way to escape and go into exile. In the third dialogue, Crito tries to persuade Socrates that it is right to flee from the unjust sentence imposed on him. In the course of their conversation, they probe the foundations of civil and moral law and treat issues as relevant to our time as to theirs.
The Phaedo presents Socrates’ final conversation. What will become of Socrates once he drinks the poison prescribed for his execution? Socrates and his friends examine several arguments designed to prove that the soul is immortal and that the death of the body does not result in killing the soul.