Death is inevitable; nevertheless, very few people, if any, would claim not to fear this eventuality that each living soul must go through. Even if one wanted to die, the driving force would not be the sweetness of death; no, there has to be another compelling issue like protection of one’s beliefs or having lost the thrill of life among other pertinent issues. Socrates learned this fact the hard way and even though he says that, “death could be a dreamless sleep. We would not be anywhere anymore. We would not be conscious of anything” (Plato Para. 42), and still concur that he would not mind it, I still have one question, would I want to be annihilated even if this observation were true?
From Socrates’ accounts as recorded by Plato in Socrates Apology, there emerge suggestive instances that point out perhaps, Socrates was afraid of death more than what modern literature might want to suggest. There are apposite issues that Socrates raised during his defense that would force to me conclude, I would not want to be annihilated at whatever cost. First, if death was as sweet as Socrates insinuates in his opinion, why did he take so long to defend cum bargain for his life before the Athenian jury? He only ‘hoped’ to succeed in his defense implying that he ‘hoped’ or rather wanted to live more than to die. If death were ‘a single night’ as Socrates suggests, he would have told his accusers to send him right away to this dreamless night that sounds better than living. Socrates was only out to defend his philosophical views, not that he preferred death to life. For instance, he says, “If I disobeyed the oracle because I was afraid of death…” (Plato Para. 56). In other words, Socrates is saying, if it were not for the oracle that supposedly confirmed him as the wisest man on earth, he would choose life for then, he would not be against anything ‘divine’. On other accounts, Socrates indicated strongly that he would rather die than compromise what he believed. Nevertheless, the question of whether he knew for sure death was as a dreamless slumber arises.
Without any degree of certainty, Socrates divulges, “…no one knows whether death…may not be the greatest good” (Plato Para. 62). This uncertainty shows how the man who appears to be rooting for death on the outside, on the inside, the exact opposite is dominated. The fact that Socrates did not know for sure the ultimate good of death sends chills down my spine for through my meditation I have concluded that life is better than death. Seeking the wisdom of the wise concerning the same, I stumbled upon Hezekiah, a man who was used by God in a great way; yet he feared death that he bargained for more years, which saw his lifespan extended by fifteen years (New International Version, Isa. 38. 5). This example typifies Socrates bargaining for his life to an extent of wishing he had money to purchase his freedom. He says, “Had I money I might have proposed to give you what I had” (Plato Para. 96). Unfortunately, he could only raise thirty minae, a scrimpy amount to secure his freedom. Remember, if he had more he would have given all that he had: reason, to live more days. At one point, he even advises the jury to spare his life. These utterances are not from a soul convinced that death is better than life, if not so, he would have bargained for the better course, which in this case is death. These observations leave me reeling at the mention of the revolting word, annihilation. Even Solomon, the sage of the old concurs that “…a live dog is better off than a dead lion” (Eccl. 9. 4). Consequently, I had better live than die; I would be of use in the land of the living than spending a lifetime sleeping in a single night that is death. Alternatively, perhaps Socrates was tired of life.
Critics and adherents alike, at some point, suspect that Socrates feared senility and tired of life altogether. Waterfield concludes that “…Socrates felt that old age would be unpleasant anyway” (204). This might be true given the way Socrates arrogantly responded to his accusers. He repeatedly insisted that he was “over seventy” years and this raises eyebrows as to what he adumbrated by that. Waterfield continues to speculate that Socrates, “saw himself as healing the city’s ills by his voluntary death” (205). For these reasons, Socrates did not choose death over life because of the ‘goodness of life after death, but to defend what he held. Whatever the case, annihilation is non-existent in areas of my concern. Despite his remarks that seem to embolden his perspective towards death, in the cases analyzed above, Socrates appears to fear death. Death might be better than life depending on one’s ideologies; nevertheless, to me, life is better than death and I would not consider annihilation at whatever cost. If only Socrates would come back to life, he would be better placed to give an opinion about life and death today, than he was then.
Works Cited
Plato. Apology. Translated by Jowett, Benjamin. N.d. Web.
The New International Version Bible. England: Clays Ltd, 1984.
Waterfield, Robin. Why Socrates Died: Dispelling the Myths. New York: W.W. Norton And Company, 2009.