The Unexamined Life Is not Worth Living - Essay Example

The paper "The Unexamined Life Is Not Worth Living" is an outstanding example of an essay on philosophy. The quotation from Socrates means that life to have value should be examined, reviewed, and remunerated. There are diverse issues to be expounded on: firstly, from whose perspective should one’s life be deemed valuable? Secondly, who should do the examination of life that should be taken insignificance? And thirdly, as human beings, should the reason for living to be taken as a universal perspective or that from the point of view of the individual? To address these concerns and to clearly explain the quotation, the point of view that should be taken is the individual’s perspective where one’s life is deemed valuable when activities and endeavors are pursued the improvement of the wellbeing of others – not only of oneself. 

One, therefore, agrees with Socrate’s contention that people should question the validity of one’s actions in able to gauge their relevance, not only to oneself but to others. As averred by Angelo (2011), “the "unexamined life"… is the opposite of the life Socrates tried to live, and in that sense I know = I have learned or I have discovered that I am without wisdom. Socrates knew that he was without wisdom because he had questioned [examined] himself and questioned [examined] all others he could find who was said to be wise, and nowhere did he find the wisdom that he has sought, wisdom meaning here: knowledge of the correct way for a human being to live, knowledge of the particular excellence that is proper to human nature” (Angelo par. 5). These statements indicate that when a person does not know or question learning how one should live, then, the purpose of living is defeated. To engage in frequent self-assessment gives humans validity to support that their lives are better than living things without rational abilities and therefore no way to indicate if the life lived is indeed worth living. Read More