I wonder sometimes why I didn't pay closer attention to the philosophy of Socrates when I was younger... but I guess I probably wouldn't have understood it then the way I do now. I wouldn't think that a adolescent of 15 years (who is brave with the invincibility only youth provides) is able to grasp what it is like to have lived a full life, deny oneself the pleasure of it and dedicate it solely to others. I wasn't that person then, I am sure of it. I think now, as I slowly creep towards middle age, can truly grasp what Socrates was living for.
If we are to believe this as a completely accurate account (which I don't: one cannot be sure of how much Plato has interjected), I was surprised how much Socrates touched on subjects of life/death, reincarnation, the afterlife.. and appeciated the way in which he defended himself at trial. I would like to know more about the context in which the trial came about. Next time I am in Athens, I will stop by the Agora, and take in the prison cel where he was thought to have been held. Just sit and ponder.
I think everyone should read this book. It made me think about my notions of life, how to live it, and what comes next. I loved it.
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