'An Analysis Of Socrates Kosmopology'

Socrates the great philosopher once stated, ‘… the unexamined life is not worth living …’. This statement echoed through the centuries to influence and inspire generations upon generations of human beings. In Plato’s Apology (Biffle & Plato, 2001), Socrates explains what he believed was the best practice for the “greatest good” of human beings, examination and understanding. Socrates urged for the examination of life, culture, tradition and moral. Socrates also insisted that “I am a citizen of the universe” (Heater, 2002). Since they were recorded, Socrates’ expressions have had much examination over the centuries. No matter what context they are placed in they remain to hold their relevance to the view of cosmopolitanism and of cultural literacy.
‘Kosmopolites’ is a Greek word that should read as ‘citizen of the cosmos’ (Heater, 1999). Heater continues to describe it as, ‘someone conscious of being part of the whole universe, the whole of nature, of which all human beings, let alone just the community of the person’s political state’. Being conscious of the whole of life was Socrates’ insistence, with significant interest in examining other cultures. As becoming a citizen of the world, or universe as Socrates claimed, involves developing a consciousness of being a part of the whole, it is interesting to see where this philosophical view-point has led humanity. Socrates was consistently depicted as the great debater (Biffle & Plato, 2001), searching for others to have meaningful and stimulating conversations with. It is recorded that Socrates said “I know nothing except the
Through self-examination Socrates sought to enlighten his listeners to the benefits of learning ‘to think critically about the social origins of apparently timeless moral norms’ and ‘the distinction between convention and nature’ (Lefkowitz, Nussbaum, & Orrill, 1998). Given that Socrates was intrigued by the art of debate and communication, the relation to how Socrates sought examination and knowing is closely attuned to cultural literacy. Cultural contexts are what construct and enlighten communication. The concept of cultural literacy is closely related to cultural practice and generally understood as the familiarity of the guidelines and harmonies of a culture and the ability to navigate these guidelines and harmonies (Schirato & Yell, 2000). It is to be noted then that Socrates’ speculations are thoughts that had predated an extended development of moral reflection (Goldman, 2004). Socrates statement of the ‘unexamined life’ has as much relevance to terms and representations like cultural literacy, and could even be the predecessor to the term