The cave Allegory is an allegory used by Plato, narrated by Socrates.
Socrates describes people, which are living in a cave since their birth. Their legs are held in place and also the neck is fixed, so they can’t see anything but a wall.
On the wall they see shadows, reflecting what’s happening outside the cave. They can’t see the exit and don’t even know that it exists. What’s happening on the wall and the shadows they’re seeing are reality for them. They create sciences and try to find regularities in the way the shadows are moving and try to make prognoses.
Socrates describes people, which are living in a cave since their birth. Their legs are held in place and also the neck is fixed, so they can’t see anything but a wall.
On the wall they see shadows, reflecting what’s happening outside the cave. They can’t see the exit and don’t even know that it exists. What’s happening on the wall and the shadows they’re seeing are reality for them. They create sciences and try to find regularities in the way the shadows are moving and try to make prognoses.
But what would happen if someone comes to free one of these persons and
show her the exit of the cave? The light would hurt their eyes and he/she would
be very confused. The things the person could see now would be less real for
him/her than the shadows in the cave, because she used to see the shadows all
his/her life.
He/she would like to go back to the cave and wouldn’t believe anything he/she sees is real.
He/she would like to go back to the cave and wouldn’t believe anything he/she sees is real.
If you would lead the person out of the cave he/she would refuse to go
outside. He/she would be blended by the light of the sun and couldn’t see
anything.
But little by little he would get used to the new things, which actually are real. He/she would see the sun, and understand that he/she just saw shadows all his/her life.
After all of this he/she wouldn’t like to go back to the cave.
But little by little he would get used to the new things, which actually are real. He/she would see the sun, and understand that he/she just saw shadows all his/her life.
After all of this he/she wouldn’t like to go back to the cave.
If he/she would go back in the cave anyway, it would take him/her time to
get used to the darkness in the cave once again. For this reason he/she
wouldn’t be doing well in the Sciences of the cave for a while. The other
people in the cave would laugh about him/her, and think nothing good about the
things outside the cave. They even would try to kill the next one who’s coming,
to lead another person out of the cave.
Intepretation
Socrates
explains how we can understand this allegory. The cave is the world, the normal
environment of the humans. Going in the daylight means going to a world where
only things exists, which can be caught by the mind but not by the eyes.
It’s related to theory of ideas or forms from Plato. This theory says things we can see are only an objective reality. The things we see are only shadows of ideas which should be the real reality. These ideas are perfect and unchangeable.
But Socrates also says, he doesn’t know this for sure, it’s just an idea or a hope.
The philosopher may be a person from the cave, freed from the chains.
It’s related to theory of ideas or forms from Plato. This theory says things we can see are only an objective reality. The things we see are only shadows of ideas which should be the real reality. These ideas are perfect and unchangeable.
But Socrates also says, he doesn’t know this for sure, it’s just an idea or a hope.
The philosopher may be a person from the cave, freed from the chains.
Cap comentari:
Publica un comentari a l'entrada