'The Death of Socrates'

In contemporary with the Age of Enlightenment, also called the Age of Reason in France, neoclassical painters used famous works of literature as a source of inspiration for their paintings. The Death Of Socrates (1787; Oil on canvas, 129.5 x 196.2 cm or 51 x 77 1/4 in) by Jacques Louis David, is a perfect example of a neoclassical painter using a famous work of literarue, in this case Plato's Phaedo, as his source of inspiration. Plato's marvelous work, however, was …

…the scene portrayed in David's painting Both David's neoclassical painting and Plato's literary work depicts the closing moments of the life of Socrates. This is when he is condemned to death by hemlock by the Athenian government for his teaching methods, which aroused skepticism and impiety in his students. Although David's painting was an illustration of Plato's Phaedo, the scene in the painting was slightly different because was painted through a Roman point of view.