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Allegory of the cave criticism
Analysis of the allegory of the cave summary
Symbolism in the allegory of the cave
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In Platos’ “Allegory of the Cave”, he illustrates a hypothetical situation in which men are chained from birth in a dark cave and all they know is the shadows in front of them. That is until one of the men is freed and led out of the dark cave into the light which initially causes him great pain. After the pain subsides he is able to see the truth about what was real and what he had known to be true in the cave was only an illusion of reality. Plato tells such a story to implore us strive for knowledge, truth and enlightenment, no matter how painful the journey. Once we have become enlightened, Plato wants us to encourage others to become enlightened as well, even if they scoff and chide us. “Men would say of him that up he went and down he came without his eyes; and that it was better not even to think of ascending…” (Page 287 lines 14-18) in this line, the enlightened man has returned to the dark cave and cannot see as well in the dark as those who never left the cave. The unenlightened captives consider him a fool for leaving and discourage each other from ever leaving. …show more content…
However, Plato feels it is our moral duty to return to the cave: “…to this end he created them, not to please themselves, but to be his instruments in binding up the State.” (Page 290 lines 15, 16) In this line, Plato suggests that by re-entering the cave and freeing others from their binds and the darkness, you are fortifying
When the prisoner got out of the cave “he remembered his old habitation, and the wisdom of the den and his fellow-prisoners.” Plato says that the knowledgeable prisoner should “become happy on the change, and pity them?” The prisoner would share the truth with the others while the giver kept the truth or the “light” from the citizens. Another difference is that the receiver chose to know more about the truth and not stay in the perfect black and white world. In the cave, the escaped prisoner tried to tell the others about the real world, but they chose not to listen to him because they are so stuck into the knowledge that has been given to them, which makes them think that the knowledge that the escaped prisoner has is a
Plato uses hypothetical situation to help the audience understand the concept of the passage. Plato states “Envision human figures living in an underground cave, with a long entrance across the whole width of the cave.” (Plato 1) Here he uses hypothetical situations to make the reader imagine what he’s trying to explain for better understanding. He continues to say “Now look again and see what will naturally flow if one of the prisoners is released.” (Plato 6) Once again he uses phrases like “look again” to have the reader imagine the situation taking place.
The main concept behind Plato’s Allegory of the cave is to show how individuals perceive the world due to factors such as education. Throughout the video, Plato’s main consensus is strictly focused on the changes that an individual experiences after he or she is exposed to the philosophical reasoning behind a situation, rather than mere interpretations. This can be seen in the opening and middle portions of the video. The video starts with all three prisoners being tied up looking in a dark cave, simply seeing shadows and hearing echoes of ongoing events that are happening outside the cave. At this point, all three prisoner are completely naive to to what is happening, and they believe everything that they are told, because they have no reason to doubt the truth behind
One prisoner somehow manages to escape allowing the prisoner to break free and escape to the outside of the cave.He was greeted by a whole new world and further confusion. The sun blazes down upon him nearly blinding him before he covers his eyes.The confusion and intense lighting brought on a gigantic feeling of confusion.The prisoner backs up and returns to the forsaken cave and speaks of his findings to the other prisoners. The prisoners listen briefly. So bizarre & not fully being able to understand what the prisoner was saying, the other prisoners shunned him and paid no attention to his findings.They ridiculed him and told him they wanted no parts. The prisoner waddled in his own confusion.This allegory tells a story with a deeper hidden meaning. In the story once the prisoner escaped the cave he was blinded by the sun. The sun is a symbol
We may think that we come up we ideas and theories because is something that happened in our mind and that nobody had to do something with it but all our surround environment influence us in how we take decision, in what we believe and much more. Philosophers had been influence throughout their life by other people in order to come up with their works. The philosophical work of some of the great philosophers of all time such as Plato, Marx, Freud and Carnegie were also influenced by the environment in which they were living. In the “Allegory of the Cave”, Plato was influenced by several events that happened in his life that lead to him writing this essay in a way to express his feeling on what society do to people that can show them reality.
The shadows seen on the cave wall are a truth to those people and Plato says that if you believe everything you see then you are just seeing a shadow of the real truth. The game the prisoners played while in the cave was interesting to me because it showed how anyone can believe one person is a master of nature when they have ‘knowledge’ of the world observed by senses. I also liked Plato’s feelings about the game they played, he felt that it showed how the master does not actually know the truth, and suggests that it is ridiculous to admire someone like this. The prisoner that had escaped can be seen as the philosopher because he or she seeks knowledge outside the cave (or outside the senses). The only thing that I found to represent itself in the story was the journey the prisoner went on to find beauty and wisdom. One very interesting element Plato added to this story was the return of the prisoner. At first I asked myself “why would the prisoner go back to the cave” but then I realized that it also represented something and that was that most people are scared to know what is real and would rather stick to what they know rather than going out of their comfort zone to possibly see something differently or to see the actual
Freedom in mind, freedom in nature, and freedom in subjectivity of individual are three kinds of freedoms. However, freedom should be expressed within the limits of reason and morality. Having freedom equals having the power to think, to speak, and to act without externally imposed restrains. As a matter of fact, finding freedom in order to live free is the common idea in Plato with "The Allegory of the Cave"; Henry David Thoreau with " Where I lived and What I lived for"; and Jean Paul Sartre with " Existentialism". Generally, Plato, Thoreau, and Sartre suggested that human life should be free. They differ in what that freedom is. Plato thinks it is found in the world of intellect, Thoreau thinks freedom is found in nature, and Sartre thinks freedom is found in subjectivity of individual.
The Allegory of the Cave, and The Myth of Sisyphus, are both attempts at explaining some aspect of the way people think or why humans do as observed. Both stories illustrate the same idea: without necessary and proper exposure to change, thinking is limited and ignorance is the direct product.
In the contemporary world , culture refers to something as vast as the distinctive way of life of an entire community. Culture is everywhere and everyone has it; it is the mass of ideas, traditions, habits, stories, beliefs, and perspectives on life passed on to us from generation to generation through literature, language, art, myth, religion, family, and various other social institutions. Plato had many different ideas when it comes to human behavior and philosophy. Some of those things can be applied to today’s society, some of them can’t. Plato’s Allegory of the Cave, which is probably his most famous theory, as well as Krishnamurti’s essay on cultural conditioning of a mind, they both focus on cultural values and living within a culture and can still be seen in today’s society.
Do we really understand the world we live in and see everyday? Is our everyday perception of reality a misinterpretation, which somehow we can’t break free from? A famous Greek philosopher by the name of Plato sought out to explain this in an experiment he called the Cave Allegory. I will discuss what the Cave Allegory is as well as talk about the movie Interstellar, which is a great example of Plato’s Cave Allegory and how it relates to Plato’s ideas. The question we have to answer first is, what is Plato’s Cave Allegory?
This is no easy task for “if this man went down into the cave again and sat down in his same seat, wouldn’t his eyes-coming suddenly out of the sun like that-be filled with darkness?” (Plato, 5). Socrates is explaining that after becoming educated about the real truths it would be hard for a person to go back to a life where those truths are rejected. The freed man must use his reason to understand that those people in the dark still believe the shadows on the wall are real truths. They have not experienced for themselves what it means to be educated by the light and the man who has seen the light must proceed with patients and caution while trying to guild the prisoners out of the dark. He understands the struggle the prisoners will encounter, but through his understanding of his faith he knows not give up on the prisoners. This is because after he had become educated he was able to understand that putting his faith in God meant saving the prisoners. However, once they have reached the light it is up to them to decide what they truly want to put their faith into. So the man who has already seen the light will be understanding if a person chooses to follow a different faith based on the common truths they have experienced. For then, that person will have experienced the journey in becoming educated about the truths of their religion, and can use their reason to decide they want to follow a different faith. Similarly, in “The Confessions” Augustine describes his journey in discovering the truths about Christianity which he ultimately puts his faith
"The Allegory of the Cave" and "The Apology" by Plato explore the methods in which people for themselves, usually through the cultivation of the soul. "The Allegory of the Cave" employs an allegory to highlight the importance of the soul, while "The Apology" focuses on Plato 's beloved mentor, Socrates, and his views on tur value of the soul. Both allegory and dialogue seek to stress the importance of the truth to caring for one 's self. The pursuit of the truth and the care of the self are intricately intertwined; one cannot do without the other. Additionally, both pieces challenge the reader from their complacency and forces them to re-evaluate their lives, calling for lives that better cultivate the soul and take care of the self. From
The flaw that Plato speaks about is trusting as real, what one sees - believing absolutely that what one sees is true. In The Allegory of the Cave, the slaves in the caves know that the shadows, thrown on the wall by the fire behind them, are real. If they were to talk to the shadows echoes would make the shadows appear to talk back. To the slaves "the truth would be literally nothing but the shadows of the images." (Jacobus 316).
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.
In Plato’s Allegory of The Cave Socrates explains that humans tend to not understand the true reality of their world. They believe that they understand what they are perceiving and sensing in the world, but in reality, they are just seeing the shadows of the true forms that make up the world. Socrates utilizes anecdotes to explain his theory on forms. The inclusion of a story to back up his theory helps the audience understand his points better, and generate more followers to his thinking. Additionally, Socrates uses examples of how his philosophies relate to our everyday life in order to provide more evidence to the reader. Although a counter claim isn’t explicitly stated in the Allegory, the reader could argue that for Plato’s program to