Was Socrates committing suicide?
If Xenophon is right about Socrates--that he thought death at that point was better and so did not defend himself in every way possible-- was Socrates wrong to conduct his defense in the way that he did? If Socrates is making the state kill him, and we don't call that suicide, it is still wrong for the state to kill him (from our point of view at the very least), and so we ought to discuss killing in general. For Socrates might be 'forcing' the state to kill him and that act of force on Socrates' part might be wrong in and of itself, especially if it is wrong for the state to kill him. But if the state is ' forced,' the state might be off the hook, so we need to discuss issues of free will, intentionality, voluntariness, etc.

• Killing

  killing: the most basic act of those under discussion = the ending of a life.

  • Is it wrong?
  • Is it wrong to kill any living thing?
  • only some?
  • What role do circumstances play?

  The basic question is whether there is any value to life per se: in other words, is the life of someone who is just alive, nothing else, worth anything?

  • Limiting case: is the life (if you can call it that) of a harmless virus worth something?
  • Another limiting case: Is the life of someone who is not just a vegetable, but in excruciating pain, with no chance of it being alleviated, worth something?
  • Another limiting case: is the life of an unrepentant mass murderer worth something?

  If some people deserve to die, is it right to kill them? It may not be.

  What sorts of things are worth more than life? Why?

  Factors that enter the picture when considering the morality of an act of killing:

  • pain
    it seems the causing of pain makes something wrong, but only under some circumstances (i.e. it's OK to tackle you rather violently if a bus is hurtling towards you)
    in order to say that a particular act of inflicting pain is wrong, is it sufficient to say that there is no benefit that outweighs the pain?
    Whose pain matters? the killed person's? the killer's? others'?
    Physical v. emotional pain
  • cruelty
    cruelty is more than just causing pain:
    enjoying the pain (vindictiveness, sadism)
    insensate, indifferent
    can a state be cruel (states have no emotions, do they: so are they indifferent? and therefore cruel?)
    is it cruel if the person does not think it is?
    limiting case: can you be cruel to a masochist (assuming they really exist)?
  • voluntariness
    voluntary means done by choice or as an act of free will
    if my children are being held hostage unless I kill, we might not want to call it voluntary
    Are only voluntary acts praiseworthy or blameworthy
  • deliberateness
    deliberate means that slow and careful thought has been given to the act
  • intentional
    to intend is to have in mind as a purpose
    premeditation is the act of planning or contriving and is used to show intent
    Are only intentional acts praiseworthy or blameworthy
  • negligence
    negligence occurs when something is done with little thought or care
    culpable negligence is when something should have been given thought and care, but was not
    e.g. if I should have verified that the gun was not loaded, I am culpably negligent
• Justification
  justifications for killing by an individual
  • self-defense
  • defense of home
  • defense of one's family or others
  • accidental
  • legal duty imposed on one
    • does that make it right?
    • if it does not make it right, is it wrong?
  • greater good
  
  justifications for the state to kill
  • war
  • greater good (kill one now or thousands die later, for instance)
  • prevention of harm (unrepentant mass murderer, for instance)
  • deterrence
• suicide:
  Suicide is killing oneself
  voluntarily-voluntary actions are done by choice or by "free will"
  and intentionally-to intend is to have in mind as a purpose
  can one "force" someone to commit suicide?
  if you force someone to kill you, is it sucide?
• euthanasia

That was the easy part: now, what does it all mean for Socrates, both Xenophon's and Plato's, and for his killers?