Blog Entry 4 "The Allegory of the Cave"

“The Allegory of the Cave” is presented by Ancient Greek philosopher Plato to compare the effect of philosophy and the lack of it on our nature. It starts off with a conversation between Plato’s brother Glaucon and his mentor Socrates. In his story, Plato describes a cave in which prisoners are chained from their necks to their foot. The prisoners were not allowed to move their heads in any direction. All they knew were shadows on the wall in front of them. These shadows were projected on the wall by things passing in front of the fire. The shadows were the closest thing to viewing reality for the prisoners. The prisoners would play a guessing game and whoever won, all the other prisoners praised him. A prisoner is freed, forced to leave the cave and everything he knows. He is asked to identify some of the objects carried by the people in the walkway. He is unable to identify the objects because he is confused and think the shadows are still real.

 

My position in the cave is walking into the light and discovering a whole new life. I feel my life is slowly changing and it all began when I decide to go back to school. Before starting school, I was a prisoner for many years because I felt stuck in one place without anywhere to go. Even though some things are still confusing I refuse to give up because I know at the end everything will become brighter as the days go by.