Answer each question directly and
as completely as possible. Make sure
that everything you write pertains directly to answering the question and is
not “fluff”. Plan your answers before
starting to write them. Use complete
sentences.
Short Answer Questions:
One
or two relevant paragraphs. 20%.
- (Euthyphro) Explain in your own words what
Socrates says is wrong with the following definition of piety: “What is
dear to the gods is pious, what is not is impious.”
- (General/Apology) What does Socrates conclude
about wisdom from the Oracle’s pronouncement that no one is wiser than he
and what he knows about himself?
Be sure to explain the conclusion that Socrates states,
particularly in Apology.
- (General) Explain Socrates’ reasons for believing
that it is always better to suffer harm than to do it.
- (Republic) Explain specifically what the ring
of Gyges example in the Republic is intended to demonstrate.
Short Essay Questions:
Four or five relevant paragraphs. 30%.
- (Crito) Explain two of Socrates’
arguments about why he chooses to die rather than to flee the city. What is Socrates’ most important
argument and why?
- (Republic) A.) What are the three types
of goods that Glaucon describes? B.) Which category do most people
think justice falls into? C.) Which category does Socrates think
justice belongs in? D.)
Explain Socrates’ view and his reasoning.
- (Republic) Explain in some detail the “myth of
the metals” and its significance for the good city being developed in the Republic.
Long Essay Questions:
Budget half of your time for this question. We expect as much relevant detail as
possible. Use these questions as an
opportunity to show us what you know about Plato. 50%.
- (Republic) State and explain as clearly and in
as much detail as possible Socrates’ argument against Thrasymachus’
claims that justice is nothing other than the advantage of the ruler.
- (Republic) What, according to Socrates, is the
proper relationship between the three parts of the soul: the rational, the
spirited, and the appetites? Use the
analogy with the good city to explain why this relationship is necessary.
- Explain the allegory of the cave, the significance of
each thing/person in it, and its relevance for Plato’s Theory of
Knoweldge.