In 399 BC, Athens was in a period of democratic politics. Although the democratic system at this time gave citizens extensive rights, it had flaws in judicial trials. The judges were not professional legal professionals, and were mostly composed of ordinary citizens, which made the trial process susceptible to factors such as emotions and prejudice. For example, in some cases, the trial results may deviate from justice due to the temporary emotions of the people.

Social thoughts are active, various thoughts emerge, and traditional values ​​are impacted. People's views on issues such as religion, morality, and politics have gradually diversified, which also provides a special social soil for Socrates' thoughts and behaviors.

The plaintiffs were mainly Athenian young man Meletus, and some others. They united to launch accusations against Socrates, which were both personal grudges and social conflicts.

The accusation includes: Socrates disrespects the gods of the city-state, which was a serious crime in Athens, where the religious atmosphere was strong, and was regarded as a challenge to the foundation of the city-state's beliefs; corrupting the young people's thoughts and believing that Socrates' speeches and behaviors mislead the young. People make them deviate from traditional morals and values.

Clarify ignorance: Socrates made it clear that he was not those who thought he knew everything in heaven and earth, regarded himself as his authority in knowledge and fooled the masses. He admitted frankly that he was ignorant in many ways, and this sober perception of his own ignorance was the starting point of his philosophical thinking.

Exploring Wisdom: To understand the puzzle of "Who is the Wisdom" in the oracle, Socrates launched an extensive exploration. He visited people from different classes, including politicians, poets, craftsmen, etc. In communicating with politicians, I found that although they were in a high position, they lacked a deep understanding of the truly important affairs, and believed that they were wise based on their power and status alone; although the works of poets are literary, they themselves cannot clearly explain the works. Connotation, creation depends more on inspiration rather than wisdom; craftsmen are skilled in their professional fields, but mistakenly believe that they are equally proficient in other fields. This excessive ego deviates them from true wisdom.

Conclusion: After a series of investigations, Socrates concluded that although he was ignorant, he was able to clearly recognize his ignorance, unlike those who thought he was smart. So, in a sense, he is wiser than those who are blindly conceited. He believes that he has been busy all his life in obeying God's will to examine human wisdom, which is his mission.

Counterattack Moletus: Socrates directly pointed out that Moletus is the guilty party. He believed that Moletus showed great recklessness in treating such serious accusations, and his behavior showed that he did not care about the growth and education of youth at all, but only used the name of accusations to satisfy his own purpose.

Self-provement is unintentional: Socrates analyzed logically and pointed out that if he is really corrupting the youth, then these corrupted youth will inevitably cause harm to himself. But in fact, he was not hurt by the youth, which means that he either had some influence on the youth inadvertently, but not intentionally; or he was falsely accused by Moletus. In either case, he should not be easily brought to court.

Accuse attitude: Socrates severely accused Moletus of his unserious attitude towards the accusation. He stressed that a serious accusation involving corrupt youth should be carefully considered and fully investigated, and Moletus's hasty behavior does not conform to the rigorous attitude that should be taken against serious accusations.

Plaintiff's view: Moletus insisted that Socrates did not regard the sun and the moon as gods, but regarded them as ordinary inorganic stones, and based on this, Socrates was considered an atheist. In Athens, this view seriously violated the religious traditions of the city-state.

Refuting the contradiction: Socrates keenly grasps the contradiction in the plaintiff's allegations. He pointed out that on the one hand, Moletus said that he was an atheist, and on the other hand, he accused him of worshiping the mysterious supernatural existence and the spirit of the demigod. These two accusations are contradictory and logically inconsistent. This contradictory allegation fully demonstrates the plaintiff's irrationality.

Emphasizing prejudice: Socrates deeply realized that if he was eventually sentenced to death, it was largely due to the prejudice of the people. In the social environment at that time, people were often susceptible to preconceived ideas and group emotions, and ignored the objective judgment of facts.

Not Fear of Death: Socrates takes Achilles' mythology as an example. When facing the choice of death and honor, Achilles resolutely chose to fight for honor and not fear death. Socrates believes that "living a bad life" is more shameful than death itself. He sees death as a possible destination, not a terrible disaster.

Stick to the mission: Assuming the questioner releases him on the condition of stopping his research on philosophy, Socrates said without hesitation that it is impossible to agree. He emphasized that his philosophical mission was given by God, and he must implement this mission wholeheartedly and pursue truth and justice through his research on philosophy and his examination of people's souls. He believes that giving up philosophy is equivalent to giving up the meaning of his own life.

Soul Immortal: Socrates firmly believes in soul immortality. He pointed out that killing him does not really hurt his soul, but instead harms the soul of the murderer even more. He believed that he was ordered to devote himself to the city-state by God, and by examining the souls of the Athenians, he helped them pursue higher moral and intellectual realms, which was his unique contribution to the city-state.

Socrates believed that according to justice and his lifelong character, he should eat in the government hall. He has been pursuing truth and justice all his life and has never intentionally done unjust things, so he feels that he deserves such treatment, which is a recognition of his just behavior.

Death Penalty: Socrates believes that the quality of the death penalty is difficult to determine. On the one hand, death may be an unknown state, perhaps a relief; on the other hand, it may also bring about some unknown fear. But he was not afraid of this uncertainty because he believed that his soul was immortal.

Incarceration: He is determined not to accept incarceration, because in his opinion, imprisonment means being a slave to those in power and losing freedom. For Socrates, freedom is a necessary condition for pursuing truth and philosophical thinking. Losing freedom is equivalent to losing the value of life.

Fines: Socrates said he was unable to pay the fine. He devoted his life to philosophical thinking and guiding people's souls, and did not accumulate wealth and was very financially struggling.

Exile: He believes that exile is not a viable option either. Because his philosophical thinking and reflection behavior may be equally ununderstood and accepted in other city-states, and his inability to accept living in an unexamined environment, this goes against his philosophical philosophy.

After analyzing and considering various punishments, Socrates finally raised a fine of thirty mina. Although this amount is relatively small, it is also the greatest effort he can make under the constraints of his own economic conditions. He hopes that in this way, he can not only express his attitude towards the allegations, but also meet the court's requirements to a certain extent.

Socrates criticized those who found him guilty without mercy. He pointed out that these people wanted to destroy him by sentenced him to death, but in reality, their actions would only put them themselves in charge of killing the wise. He predicted that this behavior will cause more people to reflect, and in the future, more people will stand up to test the behavior and decisions of these convicts. He also stressed that escaping evil is much more difficult than escaping death, and those convicts try to escape their responsibilities and mistakes, but do not know that doing so will only put themselves in a deeper moral dilemma.

Socrates predicted that after his death, more people would inherit his spirit and continue to test people's behavior and thoughts. He advised those convicted of guilt to care about their virtues rather than trying to stop others from blaming them. He believes that only by constantly reflecting and improving one's moral qualities can one truly become a valuable person.

Socrates made a profound discussion on death. He proposed that there may be two situations of death, one is ignorance and long-lasting sleep, like an eternal sleep without pain and troubles; the other is that the soul moves to the underworld, where you may encounter ancient times. Heroes and wise men continue to exchange ideas and discuss ideas. In either case, he believed that death might not be a bad thing, or even a new beginning.

On the occasion of parting, Socrates made an offer to the Athenians to entrust their orphans. He hoped that the Athenians would examine their sons as much as they did, and pay attention to the cultivation of their morality and wisdom. He knew the importance of education to young people's growth, and hoped that his son could grow up in an environment that values ​​morality and wisdom, and avoid repeating the mistakes of those who were blinded by vanity and ignorance.