Plato: The Allegory of the Cave
The Norton Reader
Plato: Plato was one of the early leaders of Western philosophy. The son of an aristocrat, he studied under
the great Greek thinker, Socrates. His family was highly distinguished; his father claimed descent from the
last king of Athens, and his mother was related to Critias and Charmides, extremist leaders of the oligarchic
terror of 404. Plato (whose acquired name refers to his broad forehead, and thus his range of knowledge)
must have known Socrates from boyhood. After Socrates was put to death in 399, Plato fled Athens for
Megara, then spent the next 12 years in travel. Upon his return, he founded the Academy, an institute of scientific and
philosophical research, where Aristotle was one of his students. After years of travel and study, Plato founded the Academy in
his native Athens in 387 B.C.; it became a famous center of philosophical and scientific discussion, and is regarded by many as
the first known university in the world. Plato's writings mostly take the form of dialogues, or "dialectics," in which knowledge
is revealed as two characters ask and answer questions of each other. (Socrates was often one of the characters.) Plato's text
The Republic, in which he lays out his ideas on the perfect state, remains a staple of college reading lists around the world.
Plato's most famous pupil was that other great Greek thinker, Aristotle... Plato's exact date of birth is unknown; most scholars
believe it was during the years 429-427 B.C.
The Allegory of the Cave, is an allegory used by the Greek philosopher Plato in his work The Republic to illustrate "our nature
in its education and want of education". The allegory of the cave is written as a fictional dialogue between Plato's teacher
Socrates and Plato's brother Glaucon, at the beginning of Book VII (514a–520a). Plato imagines a group of people who have
lived chained in a cave all of their lives, facing a blank wall. The people watch shadows projected on the wall by things
passing in front of a fire behind them, and begin to ascribe forms to these shadows. According to Plato, the shadows are as
close as the prisoners get to seeing reality. He then explains how the philosopher is like a prisoner who is freed from the cave
and comes to understand that the shadows on the wall are not constitutive of reality at all, as he can perceive the true form of
reality rather than the mere shadows seen by the prisoners. In addition, the allegory of the cave is an attempt to explain the
philosopher's place in society. This relates to the idea of forms as people struggle to see the reality beyond illusion.
Allegory is a form of extended metaphor, in which objects, persons, and actions in a narrative, are equated with the meanings
that lie outside the narrative itself. The underlying meaning has moral, social, religious, or political significance, and characters
are often personifications of abstract ideas as charity, greed, or envy. Thus an allegory is a story with two meanings, a
literal meaning and a symbolic meaning.
“The “Allegory of the Cave” by Plato represents an extended metaphor that is to contrast the way in which we perceive and believe in what
is reality. The thesis behind his allegory is the basic tenets that all we perceive are imperfect “reflections” of the ultimate Forms, which
subsequently represent truth and reality. In his story, Plato establishes a cave in which prisoners are chained down and forced to look upon
the front wall of the cave. When summarizing the “Allegory of the Cave” it’s important to remember the two elements to the story; the
fictional metaphor of the prisoners, and the philosophical tenets in which said story is supposed to represent, thus presenting us with the
allegory itself.
The multi-faceted meanings that can be perceived from the “Cave” can be seen in the beginning with the presence of our prisoners whom are
chained within the darkness of the aforementioned cave. The prisoners are bound to the floor and unable to turn their heads to see what goes
on behind them. To the back of the prisoners, under the protection of the parapet, lie the puppeteers whom are casting the shadows on the
wall in which the prisoners are perceiving reality.
As Socrates is describing the cave and the situation of the prisoners, he conveys the point that the prisoners would be inherently mistaken as
to what is reality. Because we as readers know that the puppeteers behind them are using wooden and iron objects to liken the shadows to
reality based items and people, the prisoners (unable to turn their heads) would know nothing else but the shadows, and perceive this as their
own reality. This is an important development to the story because it shows us that what we perceive as real from birth is completely false
based on our imperfect interpretations of reality and Goodness. The general point thus far of the allegory is that the general terms of our
language are not "names" of the physical objects that we can see. They are actually names of things that are not visible to us, things
that we can only grasp with the mind. This line of thinking is said to be described as “imagination,” by Plato.
Once the prisoner is released, he is forced to look upon the fire and objects that once dictated his perception of reality, and he thus realizes
these new images in front of him are now the accepted forms of reality. Plato describes the vision of the real truth to be “aching” to the eyes
of the prisoners, and how they would naturally be inclined to going back and viewing what they have always seen as a pleasant and painless
acceptance of truth. This stage of thinking is noted as “belief.” The comfort of the aforementioned perceived, and the fear of the
unrecognized outside world would result in the prisoner being forced to climb the steep ascent of the cave and step outside into the bright
sun.
Once the prisoner climbs out of the cave and is fully immersed in the sun’s rays, Socrates continues to explain the prisoner’s bewilderment,
fear, and blindness to the objects he was now being told were real. The natural reaction of the prisoner would be to recognize shadows and
reflections. After his eyes adjust to the sunlight, he
begins to see items and people in their own
existence, outside of any medium. This recognizes
the cognitive stage of though. When the prisoner
looks up to the sky and looks into the Sun, and
recognizes it as the cause of all that is around
him—he has perceived the “Form of the Good!”
This point in the passage marks the climax, as the
prisoner, whom not long ago was blind to the
“Form of the Good” (as well as the basic Forms in
general), now is aware of reality and truth. When
this has occurred, the ultimate stage of thought has
been achieved, and that is “understanding.” Plato
(through the conversation of Socrates) then
discusses the prisoner’s newfound awareness of his
own knowledge and understanding. He inquires,
would the prisoner want to return to the formerly
accepted reality of truth, or would his content only
lie in following his newly understood perception of
reality? Both Glaucon and Socrates agree the
prisoner would rather suffer any fate than returning
to his previous life and understanding (or lack
thereof!).
Upon returning to the Cave, the prisoner would metaphorically (and literally) be entering a world of darkness yet again, and would be faced
with the other unreleased prisoners. The other prisoners laugh at the released prisoner, and ridicule him for taking the useless ascent out of
the cave in the first place. The others cannot understand something they have yet to experience, so it’s up to this prisoner to represent
leadership, for it is him alone who is conscious of goodness. It’s at this point that Plato describes the philosopher kings who have recognized
the Forms of Goodness as having a duty to be responsible leaders and to not feel contempt for those whom don’t share his
enlightenment. Plato’s vision is of what a solid leader should be. The story as told by Socrates and Glaucon presents a unique look at the way
in which reality plays such an important part in our own existence, and how one understands it can be used as a qualification for leadership
and government.” B. Rice
Multiple Choice Answers: 1.) C, 2.) C, 3.) A, 4.) D, 5.) C
Rhetoric and Style Questions:
1. Characterize the tone of Socrates, the principal speaker. Characterize the tone of Glaucon.
2. Identify the place where the arguments shift from fact and value to policy.
3. Explain the analogy the speaker makes in paragraph 5.
4. In the second half of the essay, identify an appeal to ethos, to logos, and to pathos. Which is the most prominent? WHY?
5. Characterize the education recommended in paragraph 51.
Rhetorical Analysis AP Essay Questions:
1. Read paragraphs 49 – 53 and in a well-developed essay, explain how the speaker uses rhetorical strategies to develop his
argument.
2. Read the dialogue between Socrates and Glaucon in the Allegory. Then write an essay in which you explain how Socrates
uses rhetorical strategies to respond to Glaucon’s questions. Evaluate the effectiveness of his response.
Argument AP Essay Question:
1. Read paragraph 65. Then write an essay that supports, refutes, or qualifies Plato’s ideas about the nature of rule as it
applies to virtue, wisdom, and advantage. Use EVIDENCE from your reading & observation to support your argument.
AP Multiple Choice Questions:
1.) The speaker evidently believes a good education would be based on…?
a. indulgence
b. asceticism,
c. hedonism,
d. curiosity,
e. achievement
2.) The speaker would likely agree with which of the following statements?
a. Laughter is sometimes an appropriate response to pity.
b. Knowledge can be given from teacher to student.
c. Human nature is influenced by its environment.
d. Goodness and virtue are innate and cannot be learned.
e. He is happy who is dazzled by excess of light
3.) What does the word felicitate in paragraph 26 (pg 1114) mean in context?
a. congratulate, b. condemn, c. praise,
d. disclaim
e. mute
4.) What trait is to be valued the most in the intellectual world? a. consideration of others,
b. respect,
c. rationalization,
d. good,
e. faith
5.) The Allegory of the Cave is a(n)…?
a. hyperbole, b. conceit, c. extended metaphor, d. allusion,
e. satire