Unexamined Life Is Not Worth Living

Socrates stated his opinion that the unexamined life is not worth living during his trial in court. Socrates was charged for “corrupting the youth” by getting them to think for themselves and question themselves. Jimmy Santiago-Baca stated in his book, “I can’t stand the comfort zone. So many people I know, their parents gave them homes, and they get married

The Apology by Plato delves deep into the concept of wisdom and self-examination. Socrates declares that “the unexamined life is not worth living”. Putting this phrase into context, Socrates has been falsely accused by Meletus of corrupting the youth of Athens and believing in artificial gods that were not the same as the gods of Athens. Meletus represents the hypocrisy of the world, he, who is not guiltless in the face of accusation, has falsely accused Socrates of social wrongdoing. These accusations stem from Meletus’ steadfast insecurity of himself. Socrates exposes Meletus’ insecurity that he may be morally corrupt himself. These accusations fulfill that insecurity, that in falsely accusing Socrates of moral corruption, he is proving

In Plato 's “The Apology of Socrates”, Socrates states, “the unexamined life is not worth living” and he would rather be put to death them stop his practice of philosophy (The Apology). In this writing, Socrates is charged with not accepting the gods recognized by the state, devising new gods, and corrupting the youth of Athens. However, the word "apology" in the title is not our modern English interpretation of the word. The name of the speech stems from the Greek word "apologia," which translates as a speech made in defense (SparkNotes Editors). The “The Apology of Socrates” is an account of the speech Socrates makes at the trial in which he defends himself, not apologizes. What Socrates meant by declaring, “the unexamined life is not worth living”, is that a life is worth living only if it is lived in as a pursuit for a life worthy of a man to live (The Apology). Socrates believed what makes a man worthy of life is that he lives up to what is best in him as a man. Therefore this quote can be better translated as, “the unexamined life is not a worthy life for a man to live”. Socrates believes a good or worthy man has virtue. Virtue is behavior showing high moral standards such as honor and nobility. An unexamined life is one that does not examine oneself for these characteristics but claims to have wisdom. This unexamined life can be also compared to living your life on autopilot with the same dull routine and beliefs. According to Socrates, to live an examined life, one

“Is the unexamined life worth living?” (The Apology, 2016, para. 48). This question has been asked by people since the time of Socrates. Many people delve into the quandary of this question seeking a greater understanding of their purpose. Often times, people live on the surface and never truly strive for self-examination, whereas others believe it is crucial to deeply examine one’s true self. Every life is worth living. However, the difference between simply existing in an unexamined life versus living life as God intended is momentous. An examined life is lived for the benefit of others more than oneself. Socrates’ question has revealed several different truths, including the value of self-examination, the importance

    Millions of kids watch NFL games. They also follow them outside of playing football. NFL players should remember that children hold these players to a higher standard. For instance, “Janay Rice sat next to her husband during the press conference, though simple assault charges against her were eventually dropped. Footage from the night showed Rice dragging his wife's unconscious body from an elevator” (Craggs). Ray Rice is a popular player in the NFL, with millions of fans. Hearing the news, I found it to be extremely disappointing. Ray Rice had too much to drink that night, and in the elevator he punched his wife, Janay, in the face multiple times and knocked her out. The NFL fined Ray Rice millions of dollars, he lost his job and endorsements. Other than losing money, he lost his fan base, including kids who looked up to him as an amazing running back.

In February 2015, a video of Ray Rice, the “face of the Baltimore Ravens,” beating his then-fiancée unconscious in a hotel elevator went viral. Following his arrest and indictment on aggravated assault charges, he entered a pre-trial program for first offenders, usually intended for perpetrators of “victimless” crimes. Suspended from play indefinitely, Rice won an appeal to the NFL, and was reinstated, available for hiring should any team be willing to go near him.

The NFL player Ray Rice committed one of the worst crimes in the United States, domestic violence. The situation started with the player arguing with his wife, Janay, in a casino, than continued the argument in an elevator where he hit his wife knocking her to the ground and leaving her unconscious. Unfortunately for Ray he was videotaped and got shared to the police and NFL. He was than charged of domestic violence and suspended of the NFL for 2 games but later again another video was shared in the internet and that caused him his complete suspension from the NFL.

On September 8th 2014 NFL team, Baltimore Ravens terminated Ray Rice’s contract after he was captured via elevator surveillance assaulting his then fiancée, now wife in February. The video outraged the nation and the public questioned NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell’s knowledge of the entire situation. In turn, the NFL gave him the light punishment of a two game suspension. Many people argued that although Goodell previously issued much heavier fines for issues such as substance abuse (Elliot, 2014).

Plato’s “The Apology” takes places in Athens in 399 BC. Socrates, a natural philosopher, is put on trial and accused of failing to recognize the god of Athens, creating new deities, and corrupting the minds of the city youth. The Athenians, Anytus, Meletus, and Lycon fear that Socrates’ teachings lack respect for the legal customs and religious beliefs established in the city and could create a damaging effect on Athens’ community (Dan I.(n.d.). In this piece, Plato writes an account of Socrates’ speech attempting to defend himself. In this account, Socrates states that “An unexamined life is not worth living.” (Plato, n.d.). When saying this, Socrates claims that a person must examine themselves and determine the purpose of life, in order

Socrates is eventually found guilty and is to fight no longer for his innocence, but against a penalty of death. As Socrates speaks to the jury he begins to speak more of the meanings of life opposed to the need for life. He claims, “it is the greatest good for a man to discuss virtue every day and those other things about which you hear me conversing and testing myself and others, for the unexamined life is not worth living for men.. (Cahn pg. Apology39 38a1-4).” Although Socrates never explicitly states why he feels this way, but upon reading this statement and analyzing its context one can grasp a sense of this argument. Socrates is arguing that life is unlived if it is not questioned and our thoughts are not examined. He understands that his wisdom is far greater than that of the jury, and he feels that all other punishments would leave him unhappy and dissatisfied. He would rather suffer death than to go against the laws of the state, although he is being wrongly convicted. He feels he has lived a good life and a true life because he was able to examine himself and others true

To begin a discussion upon Plato’s use of the sentence, “the unexamined life [is not] worth living for a human being,” in the Apology, it should first and foremost have its principle parts defined. The two key parts which seek clarification in this sentence are that of “unexamined” and “worth living.” It will be through the context of these two constituent elements that we shall seek the verisimilitude which underlies the statement that an “unexamined life [is not] worth living.”

Socrates himself claims to not know about the many aspects virtue he is being held on trial for, but he perceives his ignorance of the topic through his own self examination. This is the true meaning of the quote. The answer lies simply within the words. It means living a life where you don’t realize

I have long been intrigued by the claim, attributed to Socrates, that the ‘unexamined life is not worth living’. For a start, there is the absolute and uncompromising tone of the language,”not worth living”. Why not set the bar lower and simply claim that an examined life is better than the alternative or that it’s useful to think about things before acting? Perhaps the quotation was framed with a fair measure of rhetorical flourish. On the other hand, what if the words were meant to be taken at face value? What could lead a person to say that a certain type of life is not worth living? I do not (and cannot) know precisely what the historical Socrates had mind. After all, he is glimpsed but darkly through myriad competing lenses tinged by the

"An unexamined life is not worth living."  (Plato, trans. 1871, pa.68)   As Socrates stands against the court, on his final moments, he stands against his firm beliefs, and his insubordinate teachings.  He feels that it is his mission, by God, and his purpose, to seek for this truth within both himself, and other men.  It is often asked what makes life worth living?  In the eyes of Socrates, this 'unexamined life' is one who lives with ignorance, and is not willing to live through experiences, and constantly searches for the truth.  Both self-reflective and self-critical, they walk on a path that seeks for answers to the bigger (and sometimes smaller) questions.  The thirst for knowledge and, through examining his own life, encouraging and reflecting on others' lives, and being critical of those who do not examine their own, Socrates drew to the assumption that an unexamined life is certainly just not worth living.

b) "The unexamined life is not worth living", quoted Socrates. It appears that, following his brilliant logic, the key to "living philosophically" is exactly how one interprets and scrutinizes their own life in a philosophical context. As with the nature of philosophy itself, living philosophically is also ambiguous, and it could very well be that one lives "philosophically" even if they do not necessarily realize it. Take, for instance, a person who questions why humans and all life forms must die; or one who ponders their true meaning in life - are they not thinking philosophically? Regardless of whether or not they actually study philosophy, they are still critically thinking about the nature of being and existence in an interpretive, "between-the-lines" way. If they genuinely reach a conclusion about these topics, they can expand upon them by applying them towards real-world scenarios - in effect, they would truly live philosophically every day.