Paragraph on “Why did Socrates take poison?” complete paragraph for Class 9, Class 10, Class 11 and Class 12

Why did Socrates take poison?

Socrates was the teacher of Plato and left no writings of his own. We know of him only through the writings of others, principally Plato. Socrates did not claim to possess great  knowledge but questioned the opinions of others, showing them often to be without any logical basis. In this way, he hoped to arrive at true knowledge. He believed that goodness comes from wisdom and that people should truly know themselves. His methods did not win him many friends, for few people like to be proved wrong in their own opinions and arguments. Socrates made many enemies. In 399 BC, at the age of 70, he was brought to trial in Athens on charges of being an evil doer. Socrates defended himself eloquently, maintaining that his actions led to wisdom not evil By a small majority, the jury condemned him to die. Socrates made no attempt to escape fate. He calmly drank a cup of the poison hemlock and died, as he had lived, with great courage and dignity.