The Allegory of the Cave by Plato Essays - 1111 Words

The Allegory of the Cave by Plato 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. The first stage of the excerpt,†¦show more content†¦Although, when they do encounter new experiences, they sometimes learn that the experience has caused them great pain. In addition, teenagers may change their vision of life. Usually teens become hardened and more used to pain; they become more familiar with the real world. Even though many teenagers feel they have experienced a great deal of pain and think they know it all, they have not witnessed an extremely harsh life until completely on their own. Adult life is what Plato intends to symbolize in the next stage, when the people are forced to see the sun. In this stage, the people are brought up a steep ascent and forced to gaze into the sun. Once more, the people experience sharp pains as they are not used to the light of the sun. The pains of adulthood may be anything including relationships, jobs, and finances. After those who are forced to stare at the sun have grown accustomed to it, they see the big picture and have greater awareness. Adults too have to persevere through their own pains, but the reward is worth it: a family, job, house, etc.. And when he remembered his old habitation, and the wisdom of the den and his fellow prisoners, do you not suppose that he would felicitate himself on the change, and pity them?(6) After seeing the light of the sun and contemplating on previous stages in life, the people pity the time spent in theShow MoreRelatedAllegory Of The Cave By Plato1722 Words   |  7 PagesAllegory of t he Cave Human experiences are an everyday aspect of individuals lives. The way individuals see, touch, smell, feel, and even remember is through unique experiences. People do not realize it, but our everyday life and community shape how the mind experiences certain events. Because of these, the way individuals see the world is different from person to person. The mind interprets the world around the individuals, however, it can only interpret what it is exposed to. It is up to the individualsRead MoreThe Allegory Of The Cave By Plato1511 Words   |  7 PagesIn our class, we read three powerful and meaningful texts. 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Plato suggests that humans have a constrained view of the world, and that reality consist of two different perceptions, a bodily eye† and a â€Å"mind’s eye.† The â€Å"mind’s eye†, the hypothetical site of visual recollection orRead MorePlato s Allegory Of The Cave1716 Words   |  7 PagesIn Plato’s, Allegory of the cave, a key theory I found was the importance of education. Plato uses an â€Å"allegory to illustrate the dilemma facing the psyche in the ascent to knowledge of the imperishable and unchanging forms† (104) Based on my research of the republic, the allegory can reveal multiple h idden messages. Plato describes, ordinary mortals are chained within an underground chamber, which according to Fiero, represents the psyche imprisoned within the human body. These mortals can’t lookRead MorePlato s Allegory Of Cave1979 Words   |  8 PagesJaneva Walters December 6, 2016 Dr. T. Brady ENG 391 Plato’s Allegory of Cave The allegory of the cave is regarded as one of the most reputed and acclaimed works by the Greek philosopher Plato in modern literature as well as philosophy. First published and presented in his work known as a Republic (514a–520a), the dialogues that have been used as conversation can be regarded as fictitious as the main conversation takes place between Plato’s brother Glaucon and Socrates. First and foremost, allegorical