The unexamined life is not worth living - wikipedia The unexamined life is not worth living The unexamined life is not worth living ( Ancient Greek : ὁ... ἀνεξέταστος βίος οὐ βιωτὸς ἀνθρώπῳ ) is a famous dictum apparently uttered by Socrates at his trial for impiety and corrupting youth, for which he was subsequently sentenced to death, as described in Plato 's Apology ( 38a5 - 6 ). Contents 1 Rationale 2 Meaning 3 Interpretation 4 References 5 External links Rationale This statement relates to Socrates ' understanding and attitude towards death and his commitment to fulfill his goal of investigating and understanding the statement of the Pythia. Socrates understood the Pythia 's response to Chaerephon 's question as a communication from the god Apollo and this became Socrates 's prime directive, his raison d'etre. For Socrates, to be separated from elenchus by exile ( preventing him from investigating the statement ) was therefore a fate worse than death. Since Socrates was religious and trusted his religious experiences, such as his guiding daimonic voice, he accordingly preferred to continue to seek the true answer to his question, in the after - life, than live a life not identifying the answer on earth. Meaning The words were supposedly spoken by Socrates at his trial after he chose death rather than exile. They represent ( in modern terms ) the noble choice, that is, the choice of death in the face of an alternative. Interpretation See also : Trial of Socrates § Interpretations of the trial of Socrates Socrates believed that philosophy - the love of wisdom - was the most important pursuit above all else. For some, he exemplifies more than anyone else in history the pursuit of wisdom through questioning and logical argument, by examining and by thinking. His ' examination ' of life in this way spilled out into the lives of others, such that they began their own ' examination ' of life, but he knew they would all die one day, as saying that a life without philosophy - an ' unexamined ' life - was not worth living. References Jump up ^ Brickhouse, Thomas C. ; Smith, Nicholas D. ( 1994 ). Plato 's Socrates. Oxford University Press. pp. 201 --. ISBN 978 - 0 - 19 - 510111 - 9. Jump up ^ Julian Baggini - Wisdom 's folly The Guardian newspaper ( Guardian News and Media Limited ) Thursday 12 May 2005 ( Retrieved 2015 - 04 - 25 ) Jump up ^ Spivey, Nigel ; Squire, Michael ( 1 March 2011 ). Panorama of the Classical World. Getty Publications. pp. 230 --. ISBN 978 - 1 - 60606 - 056 - 8. Jump up ^ D.M. Johnson - Socrates and Athens ( p. 74 ) Cambridge University Press, 31 Mar 2011 ISBN 0521757487 ( Retrieved 2015 - 04 - 25 ) External links Plato. Apology 38a. Plato in Twelve Volumes, Vol. 1 translated by Harold North Fowler ; Introduction by W.R.M. Lamb. Cambridge, MA, Harvard University Press ; London, William Heinemann Ltd. 1966. via Perseus Tufts J.O. Famakinwa - IS THE UNEXAMINED LIFE WORTH LIVING OR NOT ? Think / Volume 11 / Issue 31 / Summer 2012, pp 97 -- 103 The Royal Institute of Philosophy 2012 J.M. Ambury - Socrates ( 469 -- 399 B.C.E. ) - 2biii - The Unexamined Life in the Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy Socrates General Trial of Socrates Legacy Socratic dialogue Socratic method Socratic problem Socratic questioning Socratici viri Phrases `` I know that I know nothing '' `` The unexamined life is not worth living '' Related Euthyphro dilemma Form of the Good Peritrope Religious skepticism Social gadfly Family Sophroniscus ( father ) Phaenarete ( mother ) Xanthippe ( wife ) Lamprocles ( son ) Menexenus ( son ) Myrto ( wife ) Works about Socrates Art Double Herm of Socrates and Seneca ( 3rd century sculpture ) The Death of Socrates ( 1787 painting ) Socrates ( 1950 sculpture ) Stage Socrates ( 18th century play ) Der geduldige Socrates ( 1721 opera ) Socrate ( 1919 oratorio ) Socrates on Trial ( 2007 play ) The Clouds ( 423 BC play ) Literature De genio Socratis ( 1st century essay ) On the Concept of Irony with Continual Reference to Socrates ( 1841 thesis ) The Plot to Save Socrates ( 2006 novel ) Other Barefoot in Athens ( 1966 film ) Socrates ( 1971 film ) Dialogues Plato Apology Axiochus Charmides Clitophon Cratylus Critias Crito Demodocus Epinomis Eryxias Euthydemus Euthyphro First Alcibiades Gorgias Hipparchus Hippias Major Hippias Minor Ion Laches Laws Lysis Menexenus Meno Minos On Justice On Virtue Parmenides Phaedo Phaedrus Philebus Protagoras Republic Rival Lovers Second Alcibiades Sisyphus Sophist Statesman Symposium Theaetetus Theages Timaeus Xenophon Apology Memorabilia Oeconomicus Symposium Other Halcyon Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_unexamined_life_is_not_worth_living&oldid=826988432 '' Categories : Aphorisms Socrates Hidden categories : Articles containing Ancient Greek - language text Talk Contents About Wikipedia Bahasa Indonesia Português Edit links This page was last edited on 22 February 2018, at 03 : 13. About Wikipedia

Question: who said the unexamined life isn't worth living
Answer: Socrates