Description of Assignment: Below you will find a
prompt. You will write an argumentative
essay that addresses all the points in the prompt. The idea is to defend a thesis by using proper exegesis
(critical exposition) and analysis (reasoning about all the potential positions
one could take and then defending the most logically sound one)

Directions and Guidelines:

· 
Paper should be typed, double-spaced (don’t
quadruple space between paragraphs!)

· 
12 point font

· 
Times New Roman or something similar

· 
1 inch margins all around

· 
No cover page necessary, though if you use one,
it does not count toward word count/length

· 
Paper should be 3-4 pages in length (750-1000
words)

· 
Paper should have a clear, identifiable thesis
statement in the introduction

· 
Address ALL points in the prompt

· 
No
outside sources! Unless you clear them with me, you will lose points
for citing anything but the readings we have covered, notes, or prezis.

· 
Be sure to properly cite/quote ANY IDEAS THAT
AREN’T YOURS.

· 
A bibliography is not needed per se, but include
some reference, either in a footnote or work cited page, to the full
information regarding your textbook. I don’t care what style you use (MLA, APA,
etc). Just be consistent. You should only be citing the textbook.

· 
Late Papers: For every 24 hours they are late, 1
point deducted from the maximum score of 10

· 
Please refer to the rubric on Blackboard for a
detailed description of my grading policy

· 
Turn papers in to me via email no later than 11:59
pm on the day they are due. Please use
Microsoft Word or open office as your attachment format. I will not accept
any other format.

Prompt

Socrates claims, in the Apology,
“the unexamined life is not worth living.” Exactly what does he mean by this
claim? In what ways does Socrates live an examined life? In what ways does his
student, Plato, live an examined life? Cite specific examples from Socrates’
defense and Plato’s Republic where
you think they are truly examining their own and others’ lives. Do you agree
with Socrates that life is not even worth living if not examined? If so,
provide examples and reasons either from other examined lives you know of or
from your own life to argue that Socrates was correct. If not, explain
precisely why you think Socrates was wrong, using counterexamples to his case.