--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The unexamined life is not worth living…" description: "\"The unexamined life is not worth living for a human being.\" — Plato" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/afb/plato-103_examined-life_the-unexamined-life-is-not-worth-living_120058.jpg" --- # The unexamined life is not worth living for a human being. ![“The unexamined life is not worth living for a human being.” quote by Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/afb/plato-103_examined-life_the-unexamined-life-is-not-worth-living_120058.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/afb/plato-103_examined-life_the-unexamined-life-is-not-worth-living_120058.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/afb/plato-103_examined-life_the-unexamined-life-is-not-worth-living_120058.jpg) > “The unexamined life is not worth living for a human being.” [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Philosophical claim that living without self‑reflection lacks meaning, urging introspection as essential to a worthwhile existence. **In simple terms:** Unexamined life lacks value. Key Takeaway Self‑reflection gives life purpose. Themes philosophy self‑knowledge meaning Mood thoughtful serious Type philosophical maxim When to use this quote - education - personal development Key Concepts existential inquiry Practical Applications - critical thinking curricula Questions to Reflect On - What practical steps foster self‑examination? - Can a life be meaningful without formal reflection? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Examined life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/examined-life/) [Human beings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human-beings/) [Humans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humans/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Life worth living](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life-worth-living/) [Philosophy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philosophy/) [Unexamined life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unexamined-life/) [Worth living](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/worth-living/) ## Related quotes > [Socrates said, the unexamined life is not worth living. My dad said, Booty - mmm mmm.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-titus/socrates-said-the-unexamined-life-is-not-worth-living-my-dad-said/) [Christopher Titus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-titus/) > [Plato says that the unexamined life is not worth living. But what if the examined life turns out to be a clunker as well?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/plato-says-that-the-unexamined-life-is-not-worth-living-but-what-if/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [Socrates said the unexamined life is not worth living. But the over-examined life makes you wish you were dead. Given the alternative, I'd rather…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-bellow/socrates-said-the-unexamined-life-is-not-worth-living-but-the-over/) [Saul Bellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-bellow/) > [In a speech, the columnist Charles Krauthammer… offered a new version of Socrates' famous saying, "The unexamined life is not worth living." In our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-leo/in-a-speech-the-columnist-charles-krauthammer-offered-a-new-version/) [John Leo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-leo/) > [The ancient Greeks were the first ones to say an unexamined life is not worth living. They don't tell you of course what we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-quinn/the-ancient-greeks-were-the-first-ones-to-say-an-unexamined-life-is/) [Colin Quinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-quinn/) > [The great use of life is to spend it for something that will outlast it." "This life is worth living, we can say, since…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-james/the-great-use-of-life-is-to-spend-it-for-something-that-will-outlast/) [William James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-james/) > [“The un-re-examined life is not worth living”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-un-re-examined-life-is-not-worth-living/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“The over examined life is not worth living.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/culum-mccan/the-over-examined-life-is-not-worth-living/) Culum McCan > [“We all know that the un-examined life is not worth living (socrates). But if all you are doing is examining, you are not living.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-leipzig/we-all-know-that-the-un-examined-life-is-not-worth-living-socrates/) [Adam Leipzig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-leipzig/) > [“Socrates once said, "The unexamined life is not worth living." I would expand on his thought by suggesting, "The unexamined society is not worth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eileen-workman/socrates-once-said-the-unexamined-life-is-not-worth-living-i-would/) Eileen Workman > [Not life, but good life, is to be chiefly valued." "It is not living that matters, but living rightly. The unexamined life is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/socrates/not-life-but-good-life-is-to-be-chiefly-valued-it-is-not-living-that/) [Socrates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/socrates/) > [“We've all heard that the unexamined life is not worth living, but consider too that the unlived life is not worth examining.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julia-cameron/we-ve-all-heard-that-the-unexamined-life-is-not-worth-living-but/) [Julia Cameron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julia-cameron/) > [I started asking the big questions that I had asked in college, that my compatriots the Greek philosophers had asked, like 'what is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arianna-huffington/i-started-asking-the-big-questions-that-i-had-asked-in-college-that/) [Arianna Huffington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arianna-huffington/) > [“What do you think Socrates meant when he said, “The unexamined life is not worth living”? Third,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-armstrong/what-do-you-think-socrates-meant-when-he-said-the-unexamined-life-is/) [Karen Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-armstrong/) > [It is the greatest good for an individual to discuss virtue (aka areté) every day...for the unexamined life is not worth living.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/socrates/it-is-the-greatest-good-for-an-individual-to-discuss-virtue-aka-aret/) [Socrates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/socrates/) ## More by Plato > [Each man is capable of doing one thing well. If he attempts several, he will fail to achieve distinction in any.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/each-man-is-capable-of-doing-one-thing-well-if-he-attempts-several-he/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [You may be sure, dear Crito, that inaccurate language is not only in itself a mistake: it implants evil in men's souls.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/you-may-be-sure-dear-crito-that-inaccurate-language-is-not-only-in/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [“If men learn this, it will implant forgetfulness in their souls; they will cease to exercise memory because they rely on that which is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/if-men-learn-this-it-will-implant-forgetfulness-in-their-souls-they/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [Knowledge which is acquired under compulsion obtains no hold on the mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/knowledge-which-is-acquired-under-compulsion-obtains-no-hold-on-the/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [I do not think it is permitted that a better man be harmed by a worse.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/i-do-not-think-it-is-permitted-that-a-better-man-be-harmed-by-a-worse/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [Any city, however small, is in fact divided into two, one the city of the poor, the other of the rich; these are at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/any-city-however-small-is-in-fact-divided-into-two-one-the-city-of/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [When men speak ill of thee, live so as nobody may believe them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/when-men-speak-ill-of-thee-live-so-as-nobody-may-believe-them/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [“The love of man to woman is a thing common and of course, and at first partakes more of instinct and passion than of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/the-love-of-man-to-woman-is-a-thing-common-and-of-course-and-at-first/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [Strange times are these in which we live when old and young are taught in falsehood's school, and the one man that dares to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/strange-times-are-these-in-which-we-live-when-old-and-young-are/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [“He was a wise man who invented God.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/he-was-a-wise-man-who-invented-god/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [For let me tell you, that the more the pleasures of the body fade away, the greater to me is the pleasure and charm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/for-let-me-tell-you-that-the-more-the-pleasures-of-the-body-fade-away/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [“What shall we say about those spectators, then, who can see a plurality of beautiful things, but not beauty itself, and who are incapable…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/what-shall-we-say-about-those-spectators-then-who-can-see-a-plurality/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [Geometry existed before creation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/geometry-existed-before-creation/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [When men speak ill of thee, live so that nobody will believe them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/when-men-speak-ill-of-thee-live-so-that-nobody-will-believe-them/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [We must, if we are to be consistent, and if we re to have a real pedigree herd, mate the best of our men…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/we-must-if-we-are-to-be-consistent-and-if-we-re-to-have-a-real/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) [Explore all 1,278 Plato quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) ## More Examined life quotes > [Courage is the enabling virtue for any philosopher - for any human being, I think, in the end. Courage to think, courage to love,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornel-west/courage-is-the-enabling-virtue-for-any-philosopher-for-any-human/) [Cornel West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornel-west/) > [“If truth is what you seek, then the examined life will only take you on a long ride to the limits of solitude and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-ligotti/if-truth-is-what-you-seek-then-the-examined-life-will-only-take-you/) [Thomas Ligotti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-ligotti/) > [“Taking a lot of selfies doesn’t mean you live an examined life.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gina-barreca/taking-a-lot-of-selfies-doesn-t-mean-you-live-an-examined-life/) [Gina Barreca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gina-barreca/) > [Contemporary philosophy illustrates Hegel's dictum that philosophy is its own time apprehended in thought, for in our age philosophy yields to the objectifying technical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-phillip-verene/contemporary-philosophy-illustrates-hegel-s-dictum-that-philosophy-is/) [Donald Phillip Verene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-phillip-verene/) > [It takes tremendous discipline, takes tremendous courage, to think for yourself, to examine yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornel-west/it-takes-tremendous-discipline-takes-tremendous-courage-to-think-for/) [Cornel West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornel-west/) > [Emerson, I am trying to live, as you said we must, the examined life. But there are days I wish there was less in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-oliver/emerson-i-am-trying-to-live-as-you-said-we-must-the-examined-life-but/) [Mary Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-oliver/) > [I have a sneaking suspicion that leading an examined life and being really tan aren't consistent with one another.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dov-davidoff/i-have-a-sneaking-suspicion-that-leading-an-examined-life-and-being/) [Dov Davidoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dov-davidoff/) > [It's important to have an examined life - but it's a fine line between having an examined life and being hypercritical of oneself. There…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-nettles/it-s-important-to-have-an-examined-life-but-it-s-a-fine-line-between/) [Jennifer Nettles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-nettles/) > [“When I examined my own life, I realized that I had been standing at the foot of my mother's casket for 35 years, grieving…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathaniel-j-williams/when-i-examined-my-own-life-i-realized-that-i-had-been-standing-at/) Nathaniel J. Williams > [“Thurough examination will do the healthy no harm, and it may bless the sick.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-h-spurgeon/thurough-examination-will-do-the-healthy-no-harm-and-it-may-bless-the/) [Charles H. Spurgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-h-spurgeon/) > [“How, I wondered, can we wake up for this amazing journey that is so quickly ended? How can we experience the live performance of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurence-gonzales/how-i-wondered-can-we-wake-up-for-this-amazing-journey-that-is-so/) [Laurence Gonzales](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurence-gonzales/) > [The ancient Greeks were the first ones to say an unexamined life is not worth living. They don't tell you of course what we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-quinn/the-ancient-greeks-were-the-first-ones-to-say-an-unexamined-life-is/) [Colin Quinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-quinn/) > [“We all know that the un-examined life is not worth living (socrates). But if all you are doing is examining, you are not living.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-leipzig/we-all-know-that-the-un-examined-life-is-not-worth-living-socrates/) [Adam Leipzig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-leipzig/) > [“There are all these things that you never know whether they're features or bugs- in a company or organization, or even in a personal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-thiel/there-are-all-these-things-that-you-never-know-whether-they-re/) [Peter Thiel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-thiel/) > [It's the desire to study the human condition, the desire for collaboration, to learn and absorb, and to lead a well-examined life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-kidman/it-s-the-desire-to-study-the-human-condition-the-desire-for/) [Nicole Kidman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-kidman/) [Browse all 41 Examined life quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/examined-life/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The unexamined life is not worth living for a human being.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Plato" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/the-unexamined-life-is-not-worth-living-for-a-human-being/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Examined life" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/the-unexamined-life-is-not-worth-living-for-a-human-being/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/afb/plato-103_examined-life_the-unexamined-life-is-not-worth-living_120058.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/afb/plato-103_examined-life_the-unexamined-life-is-not-worth-living_120058.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/afb/plato-103_examined-life_the-unexamined-life-is-not-worth-living_120058.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The unexamined life is not worth living for a human being.” — Plato", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Plato", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The unexamined life is not worth...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/the-unexamined-life-is-not-worth-living-for-a-human-being/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/the-unexamined-life-is-not-worth-living-for-a-human-being/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```