Interpreting The Idea Of Death In Socrates 'Apology'

1. “Let us reflect in another way, and we shall see there is great reason to hope that death is a good. Either death is a state of nothingness and utter unconsciousness, or, as men say, there is a change and migration of the soul from this world to another. Now if you suppose there is no consciousness, but a sleep like the sleep of him who is undisturbed even by the sight of dreams, death will be an unspeakable gain. If a person were to select the night in which his sleep was undisturbed even by dreams and were to compare this with the other days and nights of his life, and then were to tell us how many days and nights he passed in the course of his life better and more pleasantly than this one, I think any man, even a great king, will not find many such days or nights, when compared with the others.” (Socrates, “Apology”, p. 49)

2.
Socrates does not fear the idea of death. He feels that death can be an “unspeakable gain” due to the fact that death could either be nothing or a journey of the soul. Socrates also compares death to a peaceful sleep. Socrates believes that his soul is good and that he has done nothing to deserve for his soul to go to a bad place. In order to live a good life, one should not live fearing death. Imagine living your life everyday thinking about how you are going to die, it would be hard to leave the comfort and safety of your house. Death can also end pain and suffering. Death is an unavoidable part of life. Fearing the inevitable can be a wasteful way to live. Accepting death like Socrates can lead to a more fulfilling