The Death of Socrates
Jacques Louis David
JACQUES LOUIS DAVID, 1787. OIL ON CANVAS.
Socrates chose death over renouncing his beliefs. He did not shy away or cower, he faced death calmly and it became his final lesson. In 18th Century France, at the height of the Enlightenment, he was a heroic figure for this steadfast commitment to truth and learning. A commitment never more clear then as he accepts his death sentence by poison hemlock with dignity, rationality and self-control. Commissioned by a wealthy French scholar, David worked for more than 5 years on the piece, consulting hellenistic and classical historians, studying ancient Roman funerary scenes and reading obsessively to create a work that served as both an allegory for the present and an accurate depiction of the past. While Socrates embodied Enlightenment thought, only 2 years later the French Revolution began and the painting took on another meaning. To proudly die for your beliefs, to strive for truth, righteousness and the betterment of man and accept whatever fate may come from doing so — The Death of Socrates was shown publicly 4 years after its debut and became a symbol of the revolution just as it had become one of the Enlightenment before. David shows that resisting authority is a beautiful, noble thing.