LETTER FROM BIRMINGHAM JAIL, the trial and death of socrates book Essay

LETTER FROM BIRMINGHAM JAIL, the trial and death of socrates book - Essay Example t or wrong - acting the part of a good man or of a bad.† (Plato, 48) Socrates believed that danger and fear of death are irrelevant from a moral standpoint and he provides significant illustrations from the Greek epics, suggesting that Achilles never had any thought of death and danger. A man ought to remain in the place which he has chosen or that in which he has been placed by a commander at hour of danger and he should not think of death or of anything, except about disgrace or shame. Socrates condemns danger and fear of death as the source of all unwise deeds and they lead one to disgraceful or shameful deeds in life. â€Å"For this fear of death is indeed the pretence of wisdom, and not real wisdom, being the appearance of knowing the unknown; since no one knows whether death, which they in their fear apprehend to be the greatest evil, may not be the greatest good. Is there not here conceit of knowledge, which is a disgraceful sort of ignorance?† (Plato, 49) In shor t, Socrates provides convincing description and illustrations for the â€Å"virtuous life†, danger and fear of death, and â€Å"shame†. According to Socrates, the laws of Athens will be damaged if he escapes his death sentence and he provides striking reasons for claiming so. Socrates believes that a State cannot subsist and be overthrown, if the decisions of law have no power, but are set aside and overthrown by individuals. Every citizen of Athens, especially a clever rhetorician as Socrates, should have a good awareness of the evil of setting aside the law which requires a sentence to be carried out. Socrates believes that he has been in an important contract or agreement with the laws of Athens according to which he should abide by the sentence of the State. Thus, he fears the contempt of the state for not obeying this contract. â€Å"Tell us what complaint you have to make against us which justifies you in attempting to destroy us and the State? †¦ Has a philosopher like you failed to discover

Conflict Prevention, Development, And Peace-Building Assignment

Conflict Prevention, Development, And Peace-Building - Assignment Example   In saying this, the author generalized his assertions, insinuating that all Secretary-General’s successes have been predetermined by the performance of their predecessors. Research shows that Secretary Generals, like Boutros Boutros-Ghali and Dag Hammarskjold, introduced new approaches to the UN’s operation and were largely successful in terms of changes made and the resources available to them at the time.   The author provides a comprehensive and critical examination of the issues highlighted at the beginning of the article. Although some of the claims are misplaced, there is no ambiguity in his approach to the discussion.   I have learned that peaceful settlements and conflict resolution are multidimensional concepts that require good interplay between multiple entities.   For example, from a superficial point of view, it often seems like the UN is at fault for most of the conflicts witnessed thus far. However, the author takes time to inform the reader tha t the UN is just a proxy for member states; it does what it is told, not the other way round.   People are often quick to ask, "where is the UN?" and "what is the UN doing?", when in actual sense it is the member countries that determine its course of action.   Countries that sit on the UN Security Council are especially guilty of micromanaging the organization because of their influence.   For example, in the Korean War, the United States was primarily responsible for the UN's decision to enter the conflict.