Term Paper on "Socrates Said That the Unexamined Life"

Term Paper 3 pages (1051 words) Sources: 0

[EXCERPT] . . . .

Socrates said that the unexamined life is not worth living, and the quest for knowledge, and especially for self-knowledge, is key to finding any meaning in life. We might consider the issue to be the meaning of living a good life and what is universally required to live a good life. One of the key issues in philosophy is what constitutes a moral life, which entails questions of the meaning of happiness and its importance, the definition of moral character and its necessity, conflicts between the two elements, and the question of what other elements are necessary for living a good life. Socrates was emphasizing

In the dialogues, Plato shows the relationship between the philosopher and the task of self inquiry. Plato has Socrates consider the role of the philosopher both in general and in the ideal city-state. The philosopher in Plato's conception is one who is inclined to be a philosopher. Socrates says that the common man must be dragged upward toward wisdom and the ideal, but the philosopher is naturally turned in that direction and seeks wisdom and knowledge of the ideal. The role of the philosopher begins with the realization of his own ignorance. For the philosopher, this leads to a rebirth, a new orientation. Plato follows his mentor, Socrates, in seeing the method of philosophy to be the dialogue, the asking of questions and the questioning of answers. For Socrates, it is the process of inquiry that constitutes wisdom, and knowledge is what one believes, which may or may not be true.

Socrates made inquiry not just a personal thing but a way for anyone to reach the truth, and so he went around Athens asking questions of those who would listen. He used this method to get them to think. He was not a teacher in the sense of imparting knowledge but in the sense of getting his students to think for themselves. His method of questioning would become known as the Socratic method and was used to guide the conversation into various areas in need of answers.

2. Socrates makes certain claims about his own degree of knowledge when he is on trial. Socrates says that the most important concern for him, and a concern that should be most important for everyone, is to search into himself and other men. He says that he has been charged with this responsibility by God, for that is the role of the philosopher. This is his manner of living, and it is his manner of living because God has said it shall be this way. Socrates makes it clear that he will obey God before he obeys his fellow man.

The precise charge against Socrates is that he is corrupting the youth, but for Socrates this is not possible since he is only introducing them to the vital and holy world of rational philosophical thought. In addition, he is humble about his own degree of knowledge and denies that he is a wise man or that he knows more than his fellow Athenians. The charge that he is teaching the youth false lessons is not in keeping with his idea that he… READ MORE

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