Rhetorical Analysis Of Socrates '

One of the major themes that Socrates heavily focused on in his speech was the philosophical ideas of wisdom and a description of Socrates’ own wisdom as well. Older accusers had allegedly claimed that Socrates did not believe in gods, and instead would try to explain phenomenons through physical explanations instead, as well as the fact that Socrates would teach others how to make a weak argument triumph a stronger one by using clever rhetorics. In Socrates’ defense, he has stated that he does not have any kind of competence and expertise in any of these areas. This statement truly divides Socrates from sophists and even Presocratics, as teachers that each belong to these organizations assert that only through experience and examination they can gain
When Socrates questioned the poets, the poets believed that they had the ability to speak brilliantly about various issues. However, Socrates revealed that although they each wrote amazing works of art, their intelligence did not come from wisdom, but instead, came from an impulse which wasn’t associated with their genius. As Socrates interrogated the craftsmen, he seemed to find men who genuinely contained much wisdom in their craft, but the men thought that their abilities in a certain field granted them to speak officially in other fields that they were associated with, although they truly knew nothing. Each case shows that Socrates confirmed that he would prefer to be as he is, stating that he truly knows nothing, rather than to be filled with a false impression of his own wisdom. Socrates states, “So I asked myself on behalf of the oracle whether I would prefer to be as I am, being in no way wise in their wisdom or ignorant in their ignorance, or to have both things that they have. I answered myself and the oracle that it profits me to be just as I am”