Ethic Case: Socrates - Essay Example

This did not go well with most Athenians who considered him dangerously seditious. Socrates had a conviction that the examined life is that spent pursuing internal and pious wisdom. This he says can be achieved by exploring the lives of others and searching the unsurpassed condition of the soul. Socrates’ statement that “The unexamined life is not worth living,” summarizes his idea of the good life. The examined life reveals that human lives and ways of living are unequal. Life appears in a hierarchical order. However, Socrates fails to clarify the precise ranking of life and does not provide where any given kind of life belongs in the hierarchy. From his interaction with different people, Socrates gets first-hand information, which makes him conclude that “the unexamined life is not worth living.” He believes that Athens does not persevere to obtain what is good. Regarding the good life, Socrates exemplifies the enlightenment stance. His notion is that ethical virtue defines a good life, which entails the practice of specific proficiency or wisdom concerning ethical issues. According to Socrates, pragmatic wisdom about ethical issues entails knowing the meaning of virtues, which involves the riddance of irregularity in belief concerning the meaning of virtues. In his pursuit of true knowledge, he comments, "Certainly I would pride and preen myself if I had this knowledge, but I do not have it, gentlemen." As it appears, Socrates believes in true wisdom founded on curiosity.