In Plato's "Apology", Socrates is on trial because he "does injustice and is meddlesome, by investigating the things under the earth and the heavenly things, and by making the weaker speech the stronger, and by teaching others these same things."
On page 75, section 25c, Socrates is debating with Meletus as to why Meletus thinks he is corrupting the youth. Socrates says, "but tell us further, Meletus, before Zeus, whether it is better to dwell among upright citizens or villainous ones?....Do not the villainous do something bad to whoever are nearest to them, while the good do something good?"
This last statement is a little confusing for me. I dont understand why its relevant to his argument. Meletus believes Socrates is voluntarily corruptive, so Meletus clearly thinks that Socrates is "bad". So why does Socrates point out that the bad do something bad to those around him and the good do something good? Socrates later says, "but either I do not corrupt, or if I do corrupt, I do it involuntarily, so in both cases what you say is false." Again, why does he phrase his statement this way when it doesn't matter what Socrates thinks of himself, but what Meletus and the others think of him, which is that Socrates is guilty of voluntary corruptiveness?
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