Plato On Living The Good Life

A solid sense of self is key to a good life

Thomas Oppong

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Photo: Plato’s Allegory of the cave/Wikimedia

Plato was a Greek philosopher who lived from around 428 BC to 347 BC. He is considered one of the most influential philosophers in history and was instrumental in developing Western philosophy.

His writings influenced almost every other prominent thinker that followed him, including Aristotle and Kant. One of Plato’s main contributions to philosophy was his theory of the “good life.”

He believed everybody has a natural desire for justice and goodness. If people could only find the courage to act on it, they would naturally become good and noble. This explains why Plato felt it was so important for people to cultivate virtue in order to lead a good life.

A good life, according to Plato, involves living in harmony with one’s inner nature and understanding the true nature of reality. To do this, one must overcome negative emotions such as anger and greed and embrace truth and knowledge.

Conquer yourself to liberate yourself

The great philosopher was once asked how to live a good life. He replied that the most important thing was to “know yourself.” “The first and best victory is to conquer self,” Plato said. A clear idea of who you are as a person is vital to a good life…

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Thomas Oppong
Thomas Oppong

Written by Thomas Oppong

Making the wisdom of great thinkers instantly accessible. As seen on Forbes, Inc. and Business Insider. For my popular essays, go here: https://thomasoppong.com

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