Dr Horan led two study programmes in August this year on the theme of the ‘power of Socrates’. The first was conducted by Zoom from 4 – 9 August and the second was held in person at Townley Hall in Dublin, Ireland from 10 August – 18 August 2024. A total of over 150 students attended these events.
Socrates, speaking at his trial in 399 BC, implored the jurors and the people of Athens to value wisdom and truth more than money, reputation and honour, and declared that the unexamined life is not worth living. Plato was present at this trial and the words he heard, spoken by his master Socrates, arguably set the course of his life and of his philosophy.
During these events, by reading and discussing Plato’s Apology, students connected with the power of Socrates’ words and of the example of his life, and reflected on their relevance to our own lives and our inner philosophic endeavours.
The programme included several guest lectures and interviews to help set the scene by considering the social, political, religious and legal context of the trial of Socrates, including contributions from Dr Horan himself, Professor John Dillon, Regius Professor of Greek (Emeritus), Trinity College Dublin, and Professor Raphael Woolf, Professor of Philosophy, King’s College, London.
