Finding the Good Life in the Symposium There are many different interpretations of what the good life truly is. Individualists believe that living well is about pleasing yourself, while utilitarians believe that living well means acting for the good of the rest of society. Even philosophers have their interpretation. Plato alludes to the philosopher's good life when he uses the phrase "my greatest pleasure." The inherent subjectivity of the word “mine” tells the reader that philosophical conversation may not necessarily be the greatest pleasure of all. "After all, my greatest pleasure comes from philosophical conversation, even if I am just a listener, whether I think so or not. It will be to my advantage. All other talk, especially that of rich businessmen like you, bores me to tears, and I feel sorry for you and your friends because you think your business is important when in reality it is totally trivial" ( Symposium 173C-D). The casual observer might believe that these lines, spoken by Apollodorus, are banal and offer little more than a bit of humor to begin the Symposium. However, an experienced reader will read between the lines and quickly realize that, embedded in the words of the passage, are a plethora of ideas that are integral to the work as a whole. The two main ideas that arise from the previous passage are the philosopher's view of the good life and the very different lives that philosophers lead. There are many different interpretations of what the good life truly is. Individualists believe that living well is about pleasing yourself, while utilitarians believe that living well means acting for the good of the rest of society. Even philosophers have their interpretation. Plato alludes to the philosopher's good life... middle of paper... not only to listen to the ideas of others, but to pass judgment on those ideas after they have been heard. Offering the judgment that the philosopher's good life was best, Plato invited his readers to attend his academy, one of the goals of his book. The ultimate idea of ​​the passage, and indeed the book as a whole, is to keep an open mind to listen to the opinions of others and disseminate your own opinions for the betterment of society. After these opinions have been heard, considered, and fully realized, individuals have the ability to make decisions for the good of themselves and those around them. When these intellectual and spiritual decisions are made correctly, human beings can begin to live good lives. Works Cited: Plato. Symposium. Trans. Alexander Nehemas and Paul Woodruff. Indianapolis: Hackett Publishing Company, 1989.