Many scholars have described the various works of Rene Descartes as being of monumental importance to western philosophy, and to the field of existentialism in particular. Specifically, Descartes’ arguments in his Meditations bring to light a seemingly simple yet profoundly controversial issue regarding the accuracy of man’s knowledge about the world around him. Within these works, Descartes embarks on a genuine quest for the truth behind knowledge and the senses, by effectively abandoning all preconceptions he previously had about the world. Similar to Plato in his Allegory of the Cave metaphor, Descartes believed that our basic experience of the world cannot always be trusted, and that it could potentially be an unstable foundation upon which our …show more content…
However, at first blush there are certain concerns which arise and target the dream argument’s credibility. The main concern pertains to C1, which claims that it is impossible to distinguish between experiences of a dream and the experience of ‘reality.’ While it may be possible to experience ‘real’ life situations within a dream, most of us would agree that, that is not always the case and in fact, for the most part, we are able to easily distinguish the realm of a dream and reality. Clearly, our dreams are much less vivid than our experiences in the waking world, not only in clarity but in experience; for we cannot feel sensations like physical pain within the dream realm like we can in reality. Additionally, with regard to the very nature of experience, dreams push the boundaries of physics and imagination allowing the individual to go beyond the capabilities that our current physical world provides. In dreams, one can fly, be teleported from one scene to another, or even to see the dead from their past. The fact that we are able to identify that a dream, in comparison to reality, is governed by marginally different laws of nature, should refute
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
Throughout the course of history, mankind has unceasingly strived to comprehend the purpose of our existence. Who are we? Why are we here? While many different conclusions to these questions have emerged, Plato shared Socrates’ believe that ignorance is the mind’s natural state and that our human existence is meant to be lived seeking true knowledge through debate and questioning. In “The Allegory of the Cave” from The Republic, Plato depicts a cave where prisoners are chained from their childhood to grow up only looking at the back of the cave wall. Above and behind them is a fire with a wall standing in front of it where puppeteers hold various figured objects in front of the fire to create dancing shadows on the wall. The prisoners, seeing
According to philosophy, The Brain in a Vat is an element used in many experiments ,intended to draw out certain features of our ideas of reality , truth , knowledge and mind.The basic concept behind it is that a machine some other evil thing has removed the human brain from the body and kept it in a jar/vat of life sustaining liquid .The neurons of the brain kept in a vat are then,indeed, connected to a computer via wires which provide electrical impulses to the brain similar to the ones it received in the body. Then , the computer would stimulate reality and the brain that has been kept in a vat would function normally as it used to do earlier , and the human would never be able to distinguish whether the brain is in the skull or a
In the translation of the dialogue from the Allegory of the Cave, readers are introduced to ideas that help them discover information about the process of enlightenment. After readers’ read the Allegory of the Cave, the readers understand Plato’s philosophical assumptions. From the dialogue, Plato confirms the idea that humans establish their own understanding of the world based on their principle senses. Plato catalogs a significant perception of how humans are able to process new ideas of enlightenment or education.
"The Allegory of the Cave," by Plato, explains that people experience emotional and intellectual revelations throughout different stages in their lives. This excerpt, from his dialogue The Republic, is a conversation between a philosopher and his pupil. The argument made by this philosopher has been interpreted thousands of times across the world. My own interpretation of this allegory is simple enough as Plato expresses his thoughts as separate stages. The stages, very much like life, are represented by growing realizations and newfound "pains." Therefore, each stage in "The Allegory of the Cave" reveals the relation between the growth of the mind and age.
Imagine a group of people, prisoners, who had been chained to stare at a wall in a cave for all of their lives. Facing that wall, these prisoners can pass the time by merely watching the shadows casted from a fire they could not see behind them dance on the walls. These shadows became the closest to what view of reality the prisoners have. But what happens after one of these prisoners is unbound from his chains to inspect beyond the wall of shadows, to the fire and outside the cave? How would seeing the world outside of the walls of the cave affect his views of the shadows and reality? It is this theme with its questions that make up Plato’s Allegory of the Cave. It is in Plato’s Allegory of the Cave that there are several key ideas presented in the allegory. The ideas presented in the allegory can be related back to themes of education and the gaining of knowledge and in ways that can relate back to “us”, the people.
Plato’s Allegory of the Cave is the most comprehensive and far-reaching analogy in his book, The Republic. This blanket analogy covers many of the other images Plato uses as tools through out The Republic to show why justice is good. The Allegory of the Cave, however, is not the easiest image that Plato uses. First, one must understand this analogy and all of it’s hidden intricacies, then one will be able to apply it to the other images Plato uses such as the Divided Line, or Plato’s Forms.
American’s education system has been entering crisis mode for a long time. Throughout the past few years, the overwhelming question “Is college needed or worth it?” While it is an opinion, there are facts that back up each answer. Plato’s “Allegory of the Cave” mentions that the enlightened must help the unenlightened and further their knowledge. The problem with America today is that high school students are given the option of college and that makes for less enlightened people. While it is possible to learn in the work force or Army, college is a better option. Mary Daly wrote the article “Is It Still Worth Going to College?” which talks about the statistical value of attending. Michelle Adam wrote the article “Is College Worth It?” which mentions the struggle young people are going through to even get into college. Caroline Bird wrote the chapter “Where College Fails Us” in her book The Case Against College where she
In Plato’s Republic, Socrates argues that for the perfectly just city to be realized in practice, philosopher must become kings and kings must become philosophers. In order to prove his point I will discuss the metaphor of the divided line and the allegory of the cave to explain Socrates’ theory of knowledge. Finally the questions of whether what a person knows make him or her better person? Does it qualify him or her to rule? Will get answered.
The “Allegory of the Cave” was drafted over a century ago by the philosopher Plato yet, the main themes and concepts of the story are still used in the modern film “The Matrix”. Plato’s allegory tells a tale of a group of men held in captivity and are having their minds controlled based upon a false version of reality. In comparison, the storyline of “The Matrix”, directed by Andy Wachowski, is based upon a falsified alter reality where humans are enslaved inside simulations created by machines thus controlling their minds. The “Allegory of the Cave” and “The Matrix” both question a universal truth and how one version of realism can contradict the very foundation of reality. Though Plato’s story is simpler and creates a more relative perspective
In meditation one of Descartes Meditations on First Philosophy, Descartes presents the framework for his philosophy. Recalling unjustified views that he held as a child, Descartes presents his goal as the search for beliefs that are beyond doubt. If we can find what these beliefs are, Descartes posits, we have found a stable foundation with which to build off of in the pursuit of all further knowledge. In pursuit of this goal, Descartes outlines his methods: he will assume nothing, and only accept as true that which cannot be doubted for any reason, ridiculous or otherwise. Two arguments are presented to provide a seed of doubt into as many of our beliefs as possible. The first argument is often refereed to as the Dream Argument. When we dream while asleep, the things that the we perceive are often not in accordance with reality; suppose we dream that we are flying though in reality we are merely lying down in bed for example. Descartes argues that, despite whatever distinctions we thi...
Plato, a philosopher in ancient Greece, said I know that I know nothing. In Plato's “Allegory of The Cave”, a man was released from the place where he lived for many years. Soon the man got his most valuable lesson that the place where used to live for many years was not the real world, but which is an imaginary world. He became the man who has the knowledge in the world of the cave, but tragically killed by others due to his speech. Since the beginning of the civilized society, education is one of the perspectives that human being was pursuing besides the basic needs. The man was getting a good education while he discovered the world follows the light. It did not only benefit himself as a person but also gives an opportunity for the group of individuals with him to enter a new world of reality. "As per Plato, true knowledge can only be gained by ascending from the lowest level (darkness of existence, ignorance of reality) to gradually go higher (coming out the cave, experiencing a different life) and then spreading that experience to the peers (return to cave, to spread the
An allegory is a story made up to describe a moral. In Plato's Book VII, Socrates creates this allegory to prove a point to Plato's brother, Glaucon. Firstly, it is good to know the story behind The Allegory of the Cave before one can make objections to it, and then when that is understood one can finally take a stand to those objections.
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’.
Descartes begins his First Meditation by calling all of his beliefs into doubt. His method of systematic doubt or skepticism serves as a general demolition of all previously held opinions. The doubting can be broken into two separate parts. First, Descartes must abandon every belief which lacks complete certainty. Second, once a careful examination of his beliefs has been performed, Descartes must retain only those beliefs characterized by the highest degree of precision. Descartes’ intention is distinctively clear, for he sees it necessary to suppose the falsity of everything he formerly believed as influenced by sensual knowledge, so that he can start again from the right foundations and establish absolutely clear truths.