Platos Allegory of the Cave Compared to the Human...

The Allegory Because of how we live, true reality is not obvious to most of us. However, we mistake what we see and hear for reality and truth. This is the basic premise for Platos Allegory of the Cave, in which prisoners sit in a cave, chained down, watching images cast on the wall in front of them. They accept these views as reality and they are unable to grasp their overall situation: the cave and images are a ruse, a mere shadow show orchestrated for them by unseen men. At some point, a prisoner is set free and is forced to see the situation inside the cave. Initially, one does not want to give up the security of his or her familiar reality; the person has to be dragged past the fire and up the entranceway. This is a difficult†¦show more content†¦These chains that bind the prisoners to the floor are beliefs. Take clothes for instance, a person may not have very much money, so they should not spend enormous amounts on clothing, but the fear of not being accepted d ue to out of style clothes requires said person to spend too much money on their clothes. The fear spoken of is derivative of the persons beliefs, holding them to abide by the cultural norms, in this case purchasing over priced clothing. The prisoners are gazing at shadows on the wall, until he or she breaks free. To break free in this world, you must look at objects, individuals, cities and societies, even the universe as a whole, with reason. Do not simply rely on perceptions and senses to grasp concepts. People carrying figures of humans, animals, and plants crafted from wood or stone, cast images on the wall for the prisoners to gawk at. These people are the political, business, and educational leaders that feed the average person their own ideologies, beliefs about various things. These individuals are in todays society, people like George Bush, the President. He makes decisions for us, and tells us what to believe on certain subjects. After the attack on our country, he decided to send to troops in and attack Afghanistan. In this particular example, the Presidents beliefs may be correct, however, that is not a relevant fact. What is relevant, though, is that in questioning his decision, I have now formulated my own opinion andShow MoreRelatedPlatos Allegory Of The Cave Compared To The Human Condition Essay997 Words   |  4 PagesThe Allegory Because of how we live, true reality is not obvious to most of us. However, we mistake what we see and hear for reality and truth. This is the basic premise for Plato#25263; Allegory of the Cave, in which prisoners sit in a cave, chained down, watching images cast on the wall in front of them. They accept these views as reality and they are unable to grasp their overall situation: the cave and images are a ruse, a mere shadow show orchestrated for them by unseen men. At some pointRead MorePlato s Theory Of Forms1556 Words   |  7 PagesEssay 1: Give a careful account of Plato’s theory of Forms as presented in the Phaedo. Plato has an idea that all ideas are merely abstract thoughts, and what we perceive with our senses is actually an imperfect version of these abstract thoughts. This is the basic idea of Plato’s theory of the Forms. To best illustrate the theory of the Forms to others, Plato explains his famous Allegory of the Cave. From the groundwork of the Forms, Plato goes on in Phaedo to argue the immortality of the soulRead MoreHow Plato Uses the Myth of the Cave Essay896 Words   |  4 PagesHow Plato Uses the Myth of the Cave Could reality be the greatest special effect of all time? Since the 6th century B.C.E a growth in human knowledge and understanding had occurred and people began to question the world rd they lived in, these people were called philosophers. Thales, Anaximander, Anaximines, Pythagoras, Heraclitus and Socrates were all highly regarded intellectuals but one mans thoughts on the world stood out. Plato is probablyRead MoreThe Allegory of the Cave2024 Words   |  9 PagesIntroduction: An allegory is a kind of story in which writer intends a second meaning to be read beneath the surface story. One of the most important allegories ever to be gifted to humankind is Allegory of the Cave. Plato’s Allegory of the Cave is one of the most potent and pregnant of allegories that describe human condition in both its fallen and risen states. The Allegory of the Cave is Platos explanation of the education of the soul toward enlightenment. It is also known as the Analogy of the Cave, PlatosRead MoreThe Allegory of the Cave Essay1600 Words   |  7 PagesThe Allegory of the Cave or also known as, Myth of the Cave, is a good example of explaining the feature of the way people think. It is a concept that demonstrates how humans are fearful of change and what they don’t know. Plato says that men are living in an underground cave and it is a situation. The Allegory of the Cave is Platos explanation of the education of the soul toward enlightenment. Plato talks ab out being free, everyday life, knowledge, and essentially what he wrote to be true.Read MorePlato And The Matrix Essay1463 Words   |  6 PagesIn â€Å"The Matrix† and Plato’s Phaedo and Republic questions of what makes up a whole and fulfilling life are answered. Both The Matrix and Plato provide alternate forms of reality, one that is based on truth and is fulfilling and one that is based on a false reality that offers false forms of fulfillment. The Matrix and Plato show the difference of living a life in a true reality and a â€Å"fake† reality where everything inside this reality is fake making the lives inside this reality fake. True educationRead MoreHuman Nature : Good Or Evil1053 Words   |  5 PagesHuman Nature: Good or Evil All ideologies, including some economic ideologies, produce theories of human nature in order to establish fundamental human rights and to establish a more productive form of government. Human nature refers to the distinguishing characteristics of humans, including ways of thinking, feeling and acting; it is the moral principles that construct certain standards of behavior, which every person is entitled to simply because they are a human being. Many philosophers such asRead MoreReligion And Its Role Within Societies 600 B.c11006 Words   |  45 Pagessocieties 600 B.C.E. - 600 C.E. Codifications and further developments of existing religious traditions provided a bond among the people and an ethical code to live by. Religion has been a dominant cultural, ethical, and political force throughout human history, both recent and ancient. Religion has been science and asylum for many generations of very many people, uniting them in their common faith. Temples were built for people to pray and perform sacrifice in, giving the people a common cause to Platos Allegory Of The Cave Compared To The Human... The Allegory Because of how we live, true reality is not obvious to most of us. However, we mistake what we see and hear for reality and truth. This is the basic premise for Plato#25263; Allegory of the Cave, in which prisoners sit in a cave, chained down, watching images cast on the wall in front of them. They accept these views as reality and they are unable to grasp their overall situation: the cave and images are a ruse, a mere shadow show orchestrated for them by unseen men. At some point, a prisoner is set free and is forced to see the situation inside the cave. Initially, one does not want to give up the security of his or her familiar reality; the person has to be dragged past the fire and up the entranceway. This is a†¦show more content†¦Prisoners, watching life unfold on the cave wall in front of them, accepting what they see as truth, as reality, are literally people. Every average person in this world is a prisoner, chained down. These chains that bind the prisoners to the f loor are beliefs. Take clothes for instance, a person may not have very much money, so they should not spend enormous amounts on clothing, but the fear of not being accepted due to out of style clothes requires said person to spend too much money on their clothes. The fear spoken of is derivative of the person#25263; beliefs, holding them to abide by the cultural norms, in this case purchasing over priced clothing. The prisoners are gazing at shadows on the wall, until he or she breaks free. To break free in this world, you must look at objects, individuals, cities and societies, even the universe as a whole, with reason. Do not simply rely on perceptions and senses to grasp concepts. People carrying figures of humans, animals, and plants crafted from wood or stone, cast images on the wall for the prisoners to gawk at. These people are the political, business, and educational leaders that feed the average person their own ideologies, beliefs about various things. These individuals are in today#25263; society, people like George Bush, the President. He makes decisions for us, and tells us what to believe on certain subjects. After the attack on our country, he decided to sendShow MoreRelatedPlatos Allegory of the Cave Compared to the Human Condition Essay1025 Words   |  5 PagesThe Allegory Because of how we live, true reality is not obvious to most of us. However, we mistake what we see and hear for reality and truth. This is the basic premise for Platos Allegory of the Cave, in which prisoners sit in a cave, chained down, watching images cast on the wall in front of them. They accept these views as reality and they are unable to grasp their overall situation: the cave and images are a ruse, a mere shadow show orchestrated for them by unseen men. At some point,Read MorePlato s Theory Of Forms1556 Words   |  7 PagesEssay 1: Give a careful account of Plato’s theory of Forms as presented in the Phaedo. Plato has an idea that all ideas are merely abstract thoughts, and what we perceive with our senses is actually an imperfect version of these abstract thoughts. This is the basic idea of Plato’s theory of the Forms. To best illustrate the theory of the Forms to others, Plato explains his famous Allegory of the Cave. From the groundwork of the Forms, Plato goes on in Phaedo to argue the immortality of the soulRead MoreHow Plato Uses the Myth of the Cave Essay896 Words   |  4 PagesHow Plato Uses the Myth of the Cave Could reality be the greatest special effect of all time? Since the 6th century B.C.E a growth in human knowledge and understanding had occurred and people began to question the world rd they lived in, these people were called philosophers. Thales, Anaximander, Anaximines, Pythagoras, Heraclitus and Socrates were all highly regarded intellectuals but one mans thoughts on the world stood out. Plato is probablyRead MoreThe Allegory of the Cave2024 Words   |  9 PagesIntroduction: An allegory is a kind of story in which writer intends a second meaning to be read beneath the surface story. One of the most important allegories ever to be gifted to humankind is Allegory of the Cave. Plato’s Allegory of the Cave is one of the most potent and pregnant of allegories that describe human condition in both its fallen and risen states. The Allegory of the Cave is Platos explanation of the education of the soul toward enlightenment. It is also known as the Analogy of the Cave, PlatosRead MoreThe Allegory of the Cave Essay1600 Words   |  7 PagesThe Allegory of the Cave or also known as, Myth of the Cave, is a good example of explaining the feature of the way people think. It is a concept that demonstrates how humans are fearful of change and what they don’t know. Plato says that men are living in an underground cave and it is a situation. The Allegory of the Cave is Platos explanation of the education of the soul toward enlightenment. Plato talks ab out being free, everyday life, knowledge, and essentially what he wrote to be true.Read MorePlato And The Matrix Essay1463 Words   |  6 PagesIn â€Å"The Matrix† and Plato’s Phaedo and Republic questions of what makes up a whole and fulfilling life are answered. Both The Matrix and Plato provide alternate forms of reality, one that is based on truth and is fulfilling and one that is based on a false reality that offers false forms of fulfillment. The Matrix and Plato show the difference of living a life in a true reality and a â€Å"fake† reality where everything inside this reality is fake making the lives inside this reality fake. True educationRead MoreHuman Nature : Good Or Evil1053 Words   |  5 PagesHuman Nature: Good or Evil All ideologies, including some economic ideologies, produce theories of human nature in order to establish fundamental human rights and to establish a more productive form of government. Human nature refers to the distinguishing characteristics of humans, including ways of thinking, feeling and acting; it is the moral principles that construct certain standards of behavior, which every person is entitled to simply because they are a human being. Many philosophers such asRead MoreReligion And Its Role Within Societies 600 B.c11006 Words   |  45 Pagessocieties 600 B.C.E. - 600 C.E. Codifications and further developments of existing religious traditions provided a bond among the people and an ethical code to live by. Religion has been a dominant cultural, ethical, and political force throughout human history, both recent and ancient. Religion has been science and asylum for many generations of very many people, uniting them in their common faith. Temples were built for people to pray and perform sacrifice in, giving the people a common cause to