He could very likely have appealed for leniency. At least he... - Jostein Gaarder, Sophie's World

"He could very likely have appealed for leniency. At least he could have saved his life by agreeing to leave Athens. But had he done this he would not have been Socrates. He valued his conscience--and the truth-- higher than life."

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More quotes by Jostein Gaarder, Sophie's World

"ويبدوا أنه مع العمر لا يطل هناك ما يدهشان . لكننا بذلك نفقد شيئا أساسيا هو ما يحاول الفلاسفة إيقاظه فيه داخلنا. ذاك ‘ن صوتا في عمق أعماقنا يقول لنا ان الحياة لغز كبير. وهذا ما جربناه قبل أن يعلموننا اياه بكثير"
"And although I have seen nothing but black crows in my life, it doesn't mean that there's no such thing as a white crow. Both for a philosopher and for a scientist it can be important not to reject the possibility of finding a white crow. You might almost say that hunting for 'the white crow' is science's principal task."
"If you believed in Christianity or Islam it was called 'faith', but if you believed in astrology or friday the thirteenth it was Superstition!"
"A lot of people experience the world with the same incredulity as when a magician pulls a rabbit out of a hat.…We know that the world is not all sleight of hand and deception because we are in it, we are part of it. Actually we are the white rabbit being pulled out of the hat. The only difference beween us and the white rabbit is that the rabbit does not realize it is taking part in a magic trick."
"A true philosopher must never give up."