Allegory Of The Cave Essay

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The allegory of the cave is an enlightening philosophical work made by Greek Philosopher, Plato. The allegory portrays people as sponges and that they only know as much as they are told, whether it is true or not and it compares the effect of education and the lack of it in human nature. Plato’s allegory of the cave is highly comparable to the movie called “The Truman Show”, which some may argue is a modern adaptation that is more relatable today. It shares some of the main themes of the allegory, for example the seven symbols of the cave: the light/fire, the shadows, the breaking of the chains, the prisoners, the free prisoner, the cave, and the real objects. The allegory of the cave is a very disputable idea which many do not understand.

Plato’s main concept of the cave is that people see reality as the visible world when reality is more than just the visible world. It begins with the assumption that if a group of prisoners had their…show more content…
But as his eyes gradually began to focus to the light, he would begin to see images more clearly. The light enables the prisoner to see the true image and not just the shadow of the image. If this prisoner was to go back to the cave, he would find that it would be impossible to conform back to his old world. At first he would not be able to identify shadows because his eyes would not yet be adjusted to the darkness in the cave. If the returning prisoner were to tell the other prisoners about the light and that their shadows were not real images, they would not believe him and would accuse him of trying to disrupt their way of life. Finally, since the prisoner could no longer fit in, the others would be forced to kill him. Plato’s Allegory of the Cave is a symbol for the contrasts between ideas and what humans perceive as reality. For example, Plato would argue that ideas go beyond the physical world. Think of a cup. That
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