This paper discusses the life of the Greek philospher Socrates and how he set the standard for all subsequent western philosophy
through his critical reasoning, by his unwavering commitment to truth and through his own example of his life. It examines how his influence on philosophy as a way of life is of central significance for he symbolizes the uneasiness of the relationship between society and philosophy. It evaluates the four doctrines of Socrates on life: virtue is knowledge, the Elenchus (method through which Socrates exposed his
interlobular ignorance), the claim to ignorance and his view of the soul - the main focus of the paper. Socrates believed that the soul is eternal and in order to prove his argument he spent his life training it to separate itself from the basic requirements of the body.