Saturday, December 1, 2007

The unexamined life

In class we spoke briefly about one of Socrates famous quotes, “The unexamined life is not worth living.” I have always enjoyed this short quote because it forces you to think about and observe your own life. Although many people believe that Socrates may have been looking down at the lower classes that are stuck in turmoil, I believe he was challenging people to live their lives to the fullest. Although the lower classes may be stuck in the fields working all day, they can still flourish within the life that they have. Even if you work in the fields every day, you can still think and use your mind for different reasoning skills. I believe that Socrates was challenging humans to not become lazy and not use their minds. The mind is an amazing thing and it is a shame when people do not take advantage of it. I have always thought of Socrates quote and forced myself to go beyond what I usually would. I think you can interpret this quote anyway that you choose, but I believe that Socrates was trying to encourage people to better their lives. You only have one life to live, so don’t shouldn’t waste it, live it the way you want to.

1 comment:

David K. Braden-Johnson said...

Socrates valued both our minds and bodies, and might just as well have said "the nonphysical life is not worth living." The point is to achieve some kind of balance between all of our defining capacities.