Socrates among other things, is most famous for the paradox ¨C °No one does wrong willingly±. Socrates¯ idea was that human excellence was really a kind of knowledge. And if lack of knowledge is the problem, you can solve it by giving people the knowledge they lack.
The premise of this argument is essentially Socrates¯ statement that virtue is knowledge. If one does not do the right thing, then it cannot be that one knew what should be done under the circumstances but lacked the virtue to do it. Rather, if one lacked the virtue, then one lacked the knowledge. So, any wrongdoing that one does is done in ignorance. Socrates argument is extended as follows:
Statement 1: Men are knowledgeable. Call this (P)
Statement 2: Men are virtuous enough to obey the cright¯ knowledge. Call this (Q)
Statement 3: Someone does something wrong. Call it (T)
Premise 1: P ú Q (Virtue is knowledge)
Conclusion 1: Q (Modus Ponens)
°Knowledge is virtue± again has its shortcoming, but it applies more to the real world than °Virtue is knowledge±.
Statement 3: A human should not be allowed to die. Call it (Z).
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