Phaedo is an account written by Plato of Socrates' last conversation before he was put to death by the state of Athens by drinking hemlock. The dialogue itself appears to recount Plato's psychological, metaphysical, and epistemological beliefs rather than an accurate representation of Socrates' final conversation. The dialogue addresses three main arguments for remembrance, including the argument from opposites, the argument from remembrance, and the argument from affinity. Plato's arguments in the Phaedo are less an argument for immortality and more an argument for duality. We must attempt to answer the questions: are the arguments for immortality in the Phaedo used as a means by which the soul establishes its existence and independence from the corporeal, and if so, is the argument really a call to live a life dedicated to philosophical research rather than bodily pleasure? Phaedo begins with a discussion among Socrates' visitors about death and dying. Death, as defined by Socrates, is the body and soul being separated from each other (Phaedo 64c). During this discussion Socrates states that although philosophers should welcome death and that it is wrong to commit suicide without the sign of the gods. Cebes criticizes this logic by arguing that one might think that the philosopher would resent being deprived of the ability to implement the will of the gods. Socrates' response to Cebes' objection is that he neither fears nor resents death because he is certain that there is a future after death. Socrates argues that "in general the concern of such a man is not with the body but that, as far as he can, he turns away from the body towards the soul" (Phaedo 64e). Socrates says that philosophe...... middle of paper...... dissipates the opinions which he thought would be useful to those who would engage in the dialectical elenchus rather than teaching them the truth, of which he imagined those who would they were able to understand could learn on their own. To discover the true meaning behind Socrates' dialogue in Phaedo, it is necessary to examine the inconstancies of his argument. Bibliography Bolotin, David. "The Life of Philosophy and the Immortal Soul: An Introduction to Plato's Phaedo." Ancient Philosophy, 2007: 39-56.Cobbs, Williams S. “Plato's Treatment of Immortality in the Phaedo.” The Southern Journal of Philosophy, 1977: 173-189. Cohen, Marc S. and Patricia, Reeve CDC Curd. Readings on ancient Greek philosophy. 4th. Indianapolis: Hackett Publishing Company, Inc, 2011. Connolly, Tim. "Plato: Phaedo." Encyclopedia of philosophy on the Internet. http://www.iep.utm.edu/phaedo/ (visited May 5, 2014).