by Kate Rosenberger
Plato's The Allegory of the Cave is from book seven of his most famous work, The Republic. Though it was written over 2000 years ago, it still has literary value and philosophical relevance in today's world. Part of the reason The Allegory has endured for all these centuries is that it can be interpreted any number of ways. It is a story of enlightenment. The question is, enlightenment to what? Each person who reads it has a slightly different interpretation than the next. None of them are right or wrong. Take from it what you will.
The Allegory is most often interpreted in a religious context. Those who live their lives without God are the inhabitants of the shadowy cave. One of them leaves the cave where they see the light of the sun (God) for the first time. This revelation has granted them a profound insight that they want to share with others. Like a modern day preacher, they dedicate their time to helping others see the light of God. They return to the shadowy cave to lead the others to the light. They hope to enlighten and thus liberate their former fellow prisoners.
The migration or immigration of a people is another possible interpretation. In Plato's time much of the world was still undiscovered. Unimaginable and fantastic new places were found as people explored the world. A person may visit a new place and find what, to them, is a different world. This can be likened to the prisoner leaving the shadowy cave. For them the new place may signify new opportunities, a new start, or a better life. The person may decide to stay rather than return to what is now for them, the cave. They then go back to their loved ones who are still in the cave and tell them about the new place. In this way they are like the enlightened prisoner.
Often, like Plato's unenlightened prisoners, we are blind to the fact that anything exists beyond the cave. Each of us at some point has our own personal cave and there are always those who seek to enlighten. The religious convert, the immigrant, the activist are all modern day examples of the enlightened prisoner.
There are an infinite number of scenarios to which The Allegory of the Cave can be applied. For me The Allegory symbolizes not spiritual but academic enlightenment. Regardless of your interpretation, there is a lot to be learned from The Allegory. The prisoners, the shadows, the sun, the chains are all symbols that take a different form to each person who reads The Allegory. It is ingenious the way Plato crafted this story into a piece so timeless that it spans centuries.
source: http://www.helium.com/items/1065272-interpreting-platos-cave
1 comment:
After reading Plato's Allegory of the Cave, my interpretation is that Plato is using the cave as an underlying symbol for ignorance.
The allegory, to me, has a much deeper meaning regarding prejudice. It seems to me that people are prejudiced towards other people that aren't like themselves, because they just don't understand them, but are frightened to admit that they don't understand. If people don't understand another group's beliefs and ideas, then it is far easier for them to say they hate that other group, than it is to admit that they simply don't understand those particular beliefs.
This in my view is ignorance, and it is ignorance that is the general cause for most discrimination. It is only after people have taken them time to learn about this other group, that we can develop an understanding for it, therefore eliminating any confusion that there may have been. This in turn, would eliminate discrimination and prejudice. This is what I think Plato could be referring to in his allegory. The quote "my opinion is that in the world of knowledge the idea of good appears last of all " backs up my point. The quote is basically saying that once you have gained the knowledge on something that you didn't understand, you will start to see the good side of it, which stops it from being as scary and confusing. This, therefore, would make any fear of the unknown just disappear. The prisoners in Plato's cave showed ignorance by fearing the outside world. If they had just taken the time to experience their new freedom' they would have discovered that it was in fact, not that scary at all.
for more see: http://www.helium.com/items/689509-interpreting-platos-cave
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