A system of morality that is based on relative emotional values is a mere illusion, a thoroughly vulgar conception that has nothing sound in it and nothing true.
SocratesRead
I am wiser than this man, for neither of us appears to know anything great and good; but he fancies he knows something, although he knows nothing; whereas I, as I do not know anything, so I do not fancy I do. In this trifling particular, then, I appear to be wiser than he, because I do not fancy I know what I do not know.
Interpretation
What this quote means
True wisdom comes from recognizing one's own ignorance.
This quote by Socrates emphasizes that true wisdom is not measured by the amount of knowledge one claims to have, but rather by the awareness of what one does not know. Socrates argues that the person who believes they know something, despite lacking true understanding, is less wise than someone who acknowledges their ignorance, highlighting the value of humility in the pursuit of knowledge.
Themes
WisdomIgnoranceKnowledgeHumility
In practice
Example use cases
This quote can be used in a speech about the importance of lifelong learning.
More from Socrates
All quotes →The poets are only the interpreters of the gods.
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The unexamined life is not worth living.
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When I was young, I believed that life might unfold in an orderly way, according to my hopes and expectations. But now I understand that the Way winds like a river, always changing, ever onward.. My journeys revealed that the Way itself creates the warrior; that every path leads to peace, every choice to wisdom. And that life has always been, and will always be, arising in Mystery.
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Not life, but good life, is to be chiefly valued." "It is not living that matters, but living rightly. The unexamined life is not worth living.
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The hour of departure has arrived and we go our ways; I to die, and you to live. Which is better? Only God knows.
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