The Allegory Of The Cave - 1349 Words

The allegory of the cave in the beginning of the book seven is a discussion between Socrates and Plato’s half-brother Glaucon. In the story, Plato speaks of prisoners chained in a cave looking straight ahead at the wall with it facing in only one direction. Behind the prisoners remains a fire creating shadows of what people want to show to them. One could imagine that it is a little spectacle for the prisoners to admire given their isolation. Supposedly, the play of shadows was all that they know of their world. Interpreting this story, readers can infer the population consisted of prisoners and the cave was the society. To fully describe the cave, Plato said it is facing in one direction with a small amount of light entering it. Within†¦show more content†¦For instance, how people believed that the world was once flat due disregarding scientific facts and publications. They were so cautious sailing too far out because they would not know what was waiting for them at the theoretical end of the sea or land. Even if there were some individuals that tried to convince them that the world was indeed round, most people would have refused to believe it. Their mentality was that everything revolved around them since it was how they were taught and what they knew growing up. Thus, it was difficult to correct that popular belief since there was no one to tell them otherwise at the beginning of it. Another example would be the prejudice or racism which unfortunately still exists today. President Trump could be used to provide a better understanding regarding the discrimination of race. Trump has said many controversial things before, during, and after his election, but ultimately it is down to the renovation of the U.S. and Mexico border wall. He has generalized the Mexican population as being criminals and rapists causing conflict and distrust between not only just the American and Mexican population, but internationally in other countries. These words do not hold any truth for all Mexicans. In addition, he had banned several Muslim countries from entering the United States days into his presidency. Looking back at the prisoners in Plato’s book, these people only knew of what they saw. Changing their mind might prove toShow MoreRelatedThe Allegory Of The Cave1086 Words   |  5 PagesExplain the allegorical significance(s) of the cave in Plato’s Republic. How is the cave an allegory of Plato’s philosophy? How is the allegory of the cave an allegory for enlightenment or philosophical education? How and why are most human beings like prisoners in a cave? Who are the puppeteers? What does the world outside the cave represent? What does the sun represent? Etc. What is Plato’s Theory of the Forms? What is a Form? How does the allegory of the cave express Plato’s Theory of the Forms? HowRead MoreThe Allegory of the Cave907 Words   |  4 Pagesman follow the law, and how do implications of society affect our behavior. The most interesting topic from the Republic is from Book VII, the allegory of the cave. With the allegory of the cave Plato gives us the power to break the chains that bind us down and leads us to see the light. In the allegory of the cave Plato sets the scene with humans in a cave that have been chained since childhood so they are restricted from moving and looking around the room. These people only see the shadows castedRead MoreThe Allegory Of The Cave1382 Words   |  6 Pageshis most intricate, yet his most important figure: the Allegory of the Cave. Socrates calls on the interlocutors to imagine a dimly lit cave in which a group of prisoners are chained behind a wall in such a way that they cannot move and are forced to stare at a wall all day. Thanks to a small fire, the prisoners are able to see the shadows of their imprisoners and images their imprisoners projected on the wall. Having always been in the cave, the prisoners believe the shadows are true; similarlyRead MoreThe Allegory Of The Cave1307 Words   |  6 Pagesthe Allegory of the Cave there are prisoners are chained up together in which they are all facing the back wall. There is a firing behind the prisoners and the onl y thing that they can see are the shadows of the people behind them. The fire casts shadows on the wall so this is the only thing that they see. Their entire lives have been based on these shadows on the wall. These prisoners have been chained up since birth, so what they see on the walls is all they know. In the Allegory of the Cave, theyRead MoreThe Allegory Of The Cave Essay975 Words   |  4 Pagesof philosophy in Brooklyn College, once said â€Å"The only thing we know for certain is that nothing is certain.† This is the main philosophy behind both Plato’s â€Å"The Allegory of the Cave†, and the renowned sci-fi movie â€Å"The Matrix.† Both works deal with escaping a false reality while unveiling a real one. In Plato’s â€Å"The Allegory of the Cave†, the escaped prisoner synonymous to the character Neo in â€Å"The Matrix†, exhibiting a shared theme behind both plots. Socrates suggest that with effort, all that isRead MoreThe Allegory Of The Cave905 Words   |  4 PagesIn the allegory of the cave Plato tries to show us two scenarios where the prisoners experience emotional and intellectual revelations throughout their lives. Plato’s theory was that the ones who truly understand knowledge should guide the ignorant people out of their unenlightened states of being and into true knowledge. The cave symbolizes the people who think that knowledge come from what they see and hear in the world. It also indicates people that make assumptions about life based on the substantialRead MoreThe Allegory Of The Cave Essay2021 Words   |  9 Pagesrecognizable image of Plato’s Republic, the message of the allegory of the cave is present not only in Book VII, but throughout the entire dialogue. Plato-as-Socrates uses the allegory to express his views on philosophy’s role in his city of speech which is later shown more deeply with the five regimes in Book VIII. The cities in the five regimes underg o a degradation as philosophy moves further and further away from the ruler; which also mirrors the cave. Plato reveals his belief that the city and philosophyRead MoreThe Allegory Of The Cave Essay1660 Words   |  7 Pages 3. Explain how the Allegory of the Cave represents Plato’s views about the nature of knowledge and the nature of reality. In the Allegory of the Cave there are chained prisoners in cave who can only stare at the cave wall in front of them. At the back there is a long entrance with a staircase the width of the cave and a fire burning in the distance. They see only shadows projected in front of them from a raised platform and hear an echo that they attribute to what they observe. They talk aboutRead MoreThe Allegory Of The Cave1619 Words   |  7 PagesIn his allegory of the cave, Plato describes a scenario in which chained-up prisoners in a cave understand the reality of their world by observing the shadows on a cave wall. Unable to turn around, what seems to be reality are but cast shadows of puppets meant to deceive the prisoners. In the allegory, a prisoner is released from his chains and allowed to leave the cave. On his way out, he sees the fire, he sees the puppets, and then he sees the sun. Blinded by the sunlight, he could only stare downRead MoreThe Allegory Of The Cave Essay718 Words   |  3 PagesThesis Allegory of Cave First what is perception and ignorance? Let us define perception as one’s view of life through rationalization of the external world and ignorance as an assumption without proof and contemplation. In the â€Å"Allegory of The Cave†, Plato uses Socrates to explain different types of people, one who sees the physical realm accepting ideas as they form and one who lives in knowledge realm by questioning those ideas. People of the knowledge realm are obligated to helps those in the