Socrates Life Is Not Worth Living Analysis

Socrates examines his life in Plato’s The Apology and whether or not it is worth living if he cannot do what he believes is his life mission, practicing philosophy. Now, is an unexamined life worth living, a bad life, or can we buy the good life with our money, and our power? Socrates explains what a virtuous life entails in comparison to a non- virtuous life and are both lives ok to have, or in the end is the virtuous life that Socrates talks about the only way to life with no regret when faced with death at the end of your life? I agree with Socrates that the unexamined life is not worth living, and I claim that Ivan Ilych’s life in Tolstoy’s The Death of Ivan Ilych exemplifies Socrates position of a non-virtuous life, because I believe Ivan
He never wavered or went outside the typical life of his society around him, and Tolstoy himself tells us that Ivan Ilych lived a bad life. “Ivan Ilych’s life had been most simple and most ordinary and therefore most terrible” (795). Ivan lived the life of the “perfect” person in the perspective of people in our daily lives. He followed the plan from start to finish, he went to school, graduated, got a job, find a wife, had some kids, and continued his job and bought nice things with his money until he died. But is that a life to live, or is that a bad life? Now Tolstoy believes Ivan did live a bad life, with his argumentative statement, he does leave out the conclusion of the argument to let you fill in the blank with what you believe. Ivan’s life is shameful; he didn’t examine anything or ask questions, or care about anything other than making money and developing meaningless relationships. Ivan is greedy, just like everyone else trying to just make money and get power in this world, but the thing with that is, is that you can never have enough, there is always room for more, and your wants cannot be satisfied. Ivan’s life was in contrast completely different from the way Socrates lived. Socrates focused on knowledge and wanted to make an impact and teach others to question life, while Ivan went about his business not caring about anyone about himself. Ivan portrays the life that Socrates warns about, the
The court just offered him the plea deal, to walk away and not teach philosophy again and he can live, otherwise it will be death, and Socrates responds to this plea deal. “Well, as I just said, if you were to let me go on these terms, I’d reply to you, ‘I’ve the upmost respect and affection for you, men of Athens, but I’ll obey the god rather than you, and as long as I draw breath and am able, I won’t give up practicing philosophy’” (29d). Socrates explains to the court that he won’t accept that deal, and would rather die than not be able to practice philosophy, and he is very content with his answer. Socrates fears not death, but living a life in which he can’t practice philosophy, a life with no meaning, no goal or mission, an unexamined life. This unexamined life is a bad life, you should be able to learn about life, and understand things for why not just because some “expert” told you that it was a certain way just because. The life that Socrates lives is virtuous, he is more about gaining knowledge than gaining money and power. He also cares more about his relationships, relationships in which both he and the people he connects with make a difference on each other, and they are not just meaningless. Socrates believes what he does so much, that he would die for it, rather than live without it.