Within philosophy, Plato’s Allegory of the Cave is almost unparalleled in its fame as a way of describing the human condition. Written as a conversation between the philosopher Socrates and Glaucon, it is contained within Plato’s Republic, written more than 2,400 years ago. Since then, it has been referenced in a John Lennon song and provided – at least in part – the inspiration for The Matrix movies.
The Allegory is one of the more accessible and important pieces in philosophy. Here’s your guide to understanding Plato’s work.
Plato establishes an elaborate hypothetical, with humans in an underground cave only able to see in a single direction. A fire is lit out of sight above and behind them, and it casts shadows against the wall in front of them. These shadows are the only things the prisoners can see, and men are constantly carrying objects in front of the flame. Plato hypothesizes that if the prisoners in the cave are able to talk amongst themselves, they will name the shadows and treat them as if they are real – they will know no differently. But if a prisoner is released from the cave, they will be confused and disorientated. The objects will seem strange and foreign since he is used to seeing only their shadows. Similarly, if the man is forced to look to the heavens he will be disorientated at first but gradually come to understand “his proper place in the world.” This knowledge will be foreign and strange to the people left in the cave, since it is so far beyond their understanding.
The allegory serves to illustrate what Plato sees as the process of illumination and education. Humanity is represented by the prisoners chained within the cave, and life is nothing more than the shadows on the wall. While we see these shadows as natural and complete, they are little more than the reflection of something larger – something obscured from our view and something the majority of us will never know.
The select few who escape the cave are those who become educated and enlightened. They begin to see the true essence behind the shadow and realize how limited the vision of those in the cave still is. Suddenly, their entire world view changes. The old labels become false and their new knowledge becomes that much more complete. Similarly, if they take one step further and adjust their vision by looking at the sun, he will gain the most complete knowledge of all – the knowledge of man and his place in the world. To Plato, this is the highest level of illumination possible.
But this knowledge bears with it a burden. The enlightened man no doubt wants to return to the cave and share his new knowledge with the prisoners. However, now the shadows in the cave seem foreign and simplistic to him. He cannot see life in the same way he did before. Moreover, the prisoners are not able to see beyond the shadows based on his descriptions alone – it becomes impossible to comprehend. As Plato writes, you can’t put sight into blind eyes. This ultimately leads to conflict, as the enlightened one is put to death. This could be symbolic of the death of Socrates himself, who was executed because of his philosophical views.
Full text of the Allegory available at: http://www.wsu.edu:8080/~wldciv/world_civ_reader/world_civ_reader_1/plato.html
