Morality is likely the most debated topic of all time, especially in regards to our moral responsibility for each other. Throughout history many writers and philosophers have taken different angles the concept of morality and have applied it in many ways. This includes: Niccolò Machiavelli with The Prince (we will be looking at The Qualities of the Prince) and Plato with The Republic (we will be looking at the section The Allegory of the Cave. The Prince (1513) essentially lays out a how-to guide of how to obtain power and how to keep it; The Qualities of the Prince contains a list of qualities that one should appear to have while in power; this work will be used to represent the case against moral responsibility for others. The Republic (approximately 380 BCE) is detailed description of the ideal society; The Allegory of the Cave is an explanation of how we should choose the servants of our state; this will be used to represent the case for moral responsibility for others. Plato’s The Allegory of the Cave and Machiavelli’s The Qualities of the Prince both contain concepts that contend whether or not we have a moral responsibility for each other, but Plato’s ideas are the ones that we should try to apply.
The Allegory of the Cave is a Socratic dialogue between Socrates and his student Glaucon explaining how the statesmen of an ideal society should be chosen. The allegory begins with a group of people kept prisoner in a cave (or den) who are only able to look forward and face a wall. The only things they are able to see are shadows illuminated by a fire behind them. They are incapable of seeing each other or those behind them, so they believe that the shadows are everything. At some point one of these prisoners is thrown out of th...
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...Plato and Machiavelli have written down concepts that can be applied strongly to the debate over whether we have a moral responsibility for each other, but Plato’s are the most hopeful and the one’s we should strive to follow. As Machiavelli wrote “one can generally say this about men: that they are ungrateful, fickle, simulators and deceivers” (Machiavelli 228). Some people may be at fault for having some of these qualities but I would not say this is entirely so for everyone. It is possible some people may tend to be crueler at heart, if this is true it would also seem to be logical that some people would be good at heart.
Works Cited
Machiavelli, Niccolò. The Qualities of the Prince. A World of Ideas. Ed. Lee Jacobus. 9th e. Boston: Bedford, 2013. Print.
Plato. The Allegory of the Cave. A World of Ideas. Ed. Lee Jacobus. 9th e. Boston: Bedford, 2013. Print.
Niccolò Machiavelli was a man who lived during the fourteen and fifteen hundreds in Florence, Italy, and spent part of his life imprisoned after the Medici princes returned to power. He believed that he should express his feelings on how a prince should be through writing and became the author of “The Qualities of a Prince.” In his essay, he discusses many points on how a prince should act based on military matters, reputation, giving back to the people, punishment, and keeping promises. When writing his essay, he follows his points with examples to back up his beliefs. In summary, Machiavelli’s “The Qualities of a Prince,” provides us with what actions and behaviors that a prince should have in order to maintain power and respect.
Niccolo Machiavelli, John Locke, and John Stuart Mill present three distinct models of government in their works The Prince, Second Treatise of Government, and Utilitarianism. From an examination of these models it is possible to infer their views about human nature and its connection to the purpose of government. A key to comparing these views can be found in an examination of their ideas of morality as an intermediary between government and human nature. Whether this morality must be inferred from their writings or whether it is explicitly mentioned, it differs among the three in its definition, source, and purpose.
Plato is one of the most familiar and commonly studied philosophers. His work is of the highest intelligence and full of thought-provoking attributes. Plato’s “Allegory Of The Cave” is perhaps one of the works most easily related to life. This allegory creates a sense of advancing into the “light” of understanding and knowledge.
Ridolfi, Roberto. The Life of Niccolò Machiavelli. Trans. Cecil Grayson. 1954. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1963. Print.
Human Nature and Moral Theory in Plato’s Republic. In Chapter 2 of Republic, Glaucon uses the Myth of the Lydian Shepherd to portray a pessimistic view of human nature. Plato, the author of Republic, uses his brother Glaucon to tell the Myth of the Lydian Shepherd. We are led to believe that Plato takes the myth and its implications on human nature very seriously by using a personal character.
The Allegory of the Cave is a parable that demonstrates how humans are afraid of change and what they do not know. In this work, Plato suggests a situation in which men are living in an underground cave. The one entrance is located near the top and there, a burning fire casts shadow. The men of the cave are chained so that they can only see the wall and cannot turn around. When objects pass by it creates a shadow on the wall. The shadows are the only thing they can see and therefore is the only thing they know to exist (747). Somehow one of them gets loose and wanders outside the cave (748). When he gets out, he is astonished at what he finds. He comes back in to tell the others about what he saw. The other men think he is mad and plot to kill him (749). This illustrates how fear, inherent in the primitive nature of man, only serves to promote his ignorance.
In Book VII of The Republic, Plato tells a story entitled "The Allegory Of The Cave." He begins the story by describing a dark underground cave where a group of people are sitting in one long row with their backs to the cave's entrance. Chained to their chairs from an early age, all the humans can see is the distant cave wall in from of them. Their view of reality is soley based upon this limited view of the cave which but is a poor copy of the real world.
Plato. “Allegory of the Cave”. Plato Republic. Trans. G.M.A. Grube. Indianapolis: Hackett Publishing Company, Inc., 1992.
5. Niccolo Machiavelli, Selected Political Writings: The Prince and The Discourses on Livy, Hackett Publishing Company, 1994.
Plato's Allegory of a Cave is a story about prisoners that are chained underground, who can not see anything except for shadows caste on a wall by a fire. The only thing that these prisoners can see is the shadows of people. Eventually, one of the prisoners breaks free of the chain and ventures out into the real world. In the real world the freed prisoner discovers that the shadows in the cave are created from light diverge off people. He recognizes there is a whole new world filled with light. The freed prisoner is very confused and blinded by the light so he decides to return to the cave. When the prisoner returns to the cave, he shares what he saw in the real world with the other prisoners. The remaining prisoners treat the freed prisoner like he is crazy and they tell the freed prisoner that the real world does not exist. The prisoners in the cave do not believe in the real world because the cave is all that they know exists.
“The Allegory of the Cave”, written by Plato, is a story that presents prisoners who are trapped in a cave and only able to see what is in front of them. There is a fire burning in a distance, and they can only see images in shadows coming from the fire. Since they are trapped in this cave, they believe that the shadows are real, and not just reflections of what really is. The tale goes on to say that one prisoner escaped, and talks about his first perception of the world. In the “Allegory of the Cave”, Plato uses the prisoners in the cave as a metaphor, or an allegory to express ideas about knowledge and enlightenment. Plato’s main purpose for writing the “Allegory of the Cave” is to inform his readers that it is in human nature to believe
Machiavelli, Nicolo (1532) The Prince. In Peter Bondanella’s and Mark Musa’s (eds) The Portable Machiavelli. (pp. 77-166) New York, New York: Penguin Books.
Plato's allegory of the cave is a metaphysical illustration of the philosopher’s view of the humanity. We are represented by the prisoners, who are mired and held captive by an extremely limited view of the world, and prevented by their chains from viewing the actual Truth of existence. We are each locked up in our own worldview, living our lives unknowingly in the shadow of actual truth. Having nothing else to rely upon but our meager eyesight and hearing, capable of only believing in shadows and whispering disembodied voices, once exposed to truth, it is blinding to us. We are dazzled and disoriented, afraid of the glaring sight that has been so rudely forced upon us.
Throughout history, a figure’s ideology towards human nature has had an ability to impact their view on other aspects of life. For example, one’s understanding of human nature has had a direct influence on their political formulas and their perspective on the way one should ideally lead their life. This idea is prevalent in the works of numerous renowned philosophers, such as Aristotle and Machiavelli. These philosophers utilized their outlook on human nature to further comment about the range of human potentials, morality’s role in acquiring a good life, and the values that control human affairs. However, even though both thinkers’ beliefs were influential in their own way, their doctrines had numerous differences between them. While Aristotle
In book seven of ‘The Republic’, Plato presents possibly one of the most prominent metaphors in Western philosophy to date titled ‘Allegory of the Cave’.