Plato’s “Leaving the Cave”

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Table of Contents

Introduction
Discussion
Conclusion
Works Cited
Annotated Bibliography

Introduction

Plato is one of the greatest Greek philosophers of the ancient world. He is famous for a number of literary works with philosophic contents, but one of the most famous is the Republic. This work written by Plato raises a great number of philosophic issues that can be discussed within the modern society perspective. The structure of the book presupposes its division into ten logical parts; each part of the book gives the readers some information about the Plato’s theories.

Discussion

The author discusses positive and negative features of the individuals, describes the forms of government, and introduces the idea about the necessity of the education in order to create a perfect state with perfect people, perfect governors and perfect form of government. The book can be regarded from a number of different points of view: it can serve as a guideline into the political philosophy of the mankind, as a handbook with many pedagogical issues for discussion, and as a description of different positions towards the ethics of the human behavior.

The author discusses the concepts of wealth, justice, moderation, and their opposites. Thus, justice is considered to be one of the human virtues including wisdom and courage as well. The next part of the book tells the readers about the individual, the state and education, where Plato describes the importance of the education for the state development: “The authorities could identify any girl or boy as worthy for preparation for the high responsibilities because class mobility was necessary in a state dependent upon an elite of philosopher-kings” (Lamm, 87).

Plato’s Republic

Another part is the description of the arts in education; the influence of arts is extremely important for future great people and their education. Thus the art plays a great role in the education of governors and philosophers. The next part discusses the human soul and its virtues as well as its negative features. Thus, the reader becomes aware of the justice and injustice represented by Plato. The author thinks describes his opinion about the justice and injustice: whether the justice is just the position of not telling lies or it should presuppose some other principles of the human consciousness and cognition.

In the book Republic Plato tries to explain the structure of the state and society in order to point out basic features of the ideal society and state, to be more precise, the author tries to establish the ideal state inhabited by the ideal society. Thus Plato introduces the division of the forms of government into four types. The first type of the form of government is tyranny; this form of the government is the worst and the cruelest one; it presupposes sufferings of ordinary people and eternal sorrow.

The tyranny is the power of people that lacks discipline and can bring only chaos. The next form is democracy where the power belongs to people who consider themselves entitled to the power only by being the citizens of the state. The form of the government that stands higher, according to the theory of Plato, is oligarchy. This form is believed to be the one which is governed by few people who try to achieve wealth by means of their power. The next form of government is the timarchy which is fulfilled by people who value themselves for an ability to use this very power. And the best form of government represented by the Plato’s theory is the aristocracy.

According to the Plato’s theory represented in his work Republic the aristocratic form of government is believed to be the best and the most appropriate one. As Plato was an idealist, he had idealistic position towards the state. Thus, in the aristocratic society the power belongs to the philosopher-kings who are educated and wise, the lower level of the social hierarchy is preoccupied by the warriors who have the goal to guard the governors because thy are entitled to the courageous actions, and the lowest level in the society is given by Plato to the ordinary people, such as farmers, merchants and other people who are governed by moderate desires and have no right to occupy a higher position.

Allegory of the Cave

The next issue that is necessary to discuss is the soul of the human from the point of view of its virtues including the desire for knowledge, truth and education. For this purpose the reader should know about the allegory of the cave introduced by Plato in his book in order to describe the uneducated people and the desire for education. One of the interpretations of the allegory sais that this metaphor was introduced in order to describe his teacher’s desire for knowledge and the attempts to educate people, to reveal the truth in order to guide them into light.

“Two well-known similes in the Republic, the divided or the broken line and the cave, provide additional support for the concept of an ‘educated right opinion’ and, of course, justify the rule of the philosopher in the ideal state” (Hall, 70). As it was already mentioned in the current research, the ideal state should be governed by the philosopher-kings. The philosophers are considered to be educated people who posse wisdom to rule the state.

Thus, the ‘educated right opinion’ is the issue that should be discussed in the light of the allegory of the cave because it is “a clue to the essence of unhiddenness” (Heidegger, 17). Thereby, Plato compares the knowledge to the sun which makes ordinary objects visible and the individual who understands the genuine essence of the objects follows the sunlight (Cottingham, 63). This allegory presupposes that all people are in the cave; they are chained and can see only their reflections made by the shadows. The author claims it is necessary to reach the higher world beyond the cave because in the cave we can see the objects and their shadows, whereas the sunlight makes everything clear and understandable.

Interpretations of the Plato’s allegory

Moreover, one can use the allegory of the cave introduced by Plato to study other different allegories and analyze them. Thus, there can be a number of different approaches to the examination of the allegory. Furthermore, the allegory of the cave explains the desire for knowledge represented by the author of the Republic. The wisdom is the result of the education and the education and knowledge are essential for the state development.

In this perspective it is necessary to mention the virtues of the human soul which can be govern by different thoughts. Thus the appetitive soul is believed to be ruled by moderation and is responsible for our feelings. But, according to the Plato’s theory, the lowest class of social hierarchy possesses the appetitive soul. The higher class is the class of warriors and it is considered to possess a spirited soul which is responsible for courage and concerns the willing. Consequently, the highest class of the philosopher-kings is believed to possess a rational soul which presupposes logical thinking and causes wisdom.

As a result of the previous investigation, it is necessary to discuss why people who live in poverty are uneducated or even abducted, when given the opportunity, will not come out of their caves of despair. The problem of education is one of the burning problems of the modern society. The uneducated people are likely to live under the poverty line; they are the bright representatives of people who live within the modern society and cannot enjoy the equal rights for education and normal life. There are a great number of reasons for the poor people to be poor, but one of the problems that is involved by the poverty issue is the lack of education.

Homelessness is increasing with an alarming rate in America. However, the authorities do not give it the recognition it deserves in local, state or federal level. Even media does not consider homelessness and poverty a serious threat to structure and stability of nation. According to a survey, almost 37 million people in America live below the official poverty line. Millions of Americans struggle each day to pay for necessary needs such as food and bills when they lose their jobs or face medical emergencies. Poverty is imposing more and more effective cost on society of about $500 billion each year, which is about four percent of America’s nation gross domestic product. Consequently, the United States should set a national goal of cutting poverty and homelessness in half over the next years.

In recent year, debate over homelessness and poverty has gained high attention. There have been two sides of argument ever since it started; one hand some people view poverty as an individual failure imposing no responsibility of failure on government. It includes wide variety of characteristic from low level of education to lack of hardworking nature. On the other hand, people consider poverty because of failing at structural level instead of individual level. It is the inability of nation economy to produce decent jobs with decent pay.

The counterpart believe that the poverty is a result of individual own irresponsibility. American government provide enough facilities for one to stand on his/her feet but those who do not want to work hard or struggle they lose hope and thus ended in poverty. They believe that people should not blame government for the current poverty and homelessness problem in America. However, one issue and cause of all this which the counterpart people cannot neglect is the inequality in economic growth of the United States which we will discuss ahead. In the following discussion, I will make the counterparts and government officials believe that it is not a result of individual irresponsibility but in fact outcome of government lack of devotion. Homelessness is something that one cannot consider separately from poverty.

Americans should not fall under poverty line where they cannot work or educate fully. All Americans should get opportunity to have essential resources in order to advance and move upward; in line of which poverty is a great hurdle.

Homelessness is a big problem with many faces and causes, but the root cause is the inability of nation to commit itself to people needs and to introduce programs to eliminate poverty. I believe that with few steps and enhancements the government can do a lot for the poverty the country is facing. Government should raise the minimum wage to at least half the hourly wage. It should try to connect the disconnected youth with school and work.

With just few enhancements and changes, the government can do a lot for the poverty and homelessness in the United States but the US government officials do not worth considering it a problem. With proper wages, the government can do a lot; students can maximize their abilities by living in a tension free space, workers can work more devotedly by not indulging into tensions of debts and poverty line. So, as a whole the nation can progress in more effective manner.

Lack of education and poverty

Thus, the lack of education is represented vividly by the current situation in the United States of America as well as in other different countries all over the world. The people who are encouraged are not always likely to obtain education because of the background or the neighborhood. The people have to cooperate and support each other when encountering such problems as poverty because of lack of education.

One can claim that it is unnecessary to discuss the financial situation of the uneducated people because the education is not the thing they can afford. Nevertheless, there are different organizations and associations which deal with poor people in order to help them to obtain education and become full-fledged members of the modern society and enjoy equal rights with other educated members of the same society. Moreover, the U.S. Constitution guarantees this right for the citizens of the United States of America.

Conclusion

The allegory of the cave helps us to analyze our own position that we have towards the modern world and the society, towards a great number of different issues, such as justice, wisdom and education. This metaphor encourages the people to believe in their power, in the power of their mind and to act in accordance with the principles. The lack of education is the problem of the entire modern society as well as the problem of each individual considered separately from his environment and neighborhood.

The Republic written by Plato, the great philosopher of the ancient world, is the handbook on ethical thinking. It makes the reader analyze the modern world, society, form of government and other basic notions from the point of view of the idealistic perspective. The allegory of the cave helps modern people to come out of their cave of despair and use the given chance. The opportunities exist to be used in order to achieve success. Thus, the uneducated people who do not take their chance and cannot use the opportunities to become successful and full-fledged members of their society are doomed to stay in their caves till the rest of their lives. The cave is not the dwelling to live in, it is a temporary shelter fro the storm. When the individual is ready to understand the current situation and the consequences of the storm, he can come out of the cave and see the objects in the perspective of the daylight.

Works Cited

Cottingham, John. Western Philosophy: An Anthology. London: Wiley-Blackwell, 1996.

Damrosch, David, and April Alliston, Marshall Brown,Page duBois, Sabry Hafez, Ursula K. Heise, Djelal Kadir, David L. Pike,Sheldon Pollock, Bruce Robbins, Haruo Shirane, Jane Tylus, Pauline Yu. Longman Anthology of World Literature, The, Compact Edition. London: Longman, 2008.

Hall, Robert. Plato. London: Routledge, 2004.

Heidegger, Martin, and Ted Sadler. The Essence of Truth: On Plato’s Cave Allegory and Theaetetus. London: Continuum International Publishing Group, 2002.

Lamm, Robert. Humanities in Western Culture, Brief Revised Fourth Edition. London: McGraw-Hill Higher Education, 2004.

Annotated Bibliography

Cottingham, John. Western Philosophy: An Anthology. London: Wiley-Blackwell, 1996.

The book written by John Cottingham and published by Wiley-Blackwell Western Philosophy: An Anthology is the handbook that is easy to read and understand. It involves the history of the philosophic ideas throughout the history, starting with the ancient world philosopher, suchlike Socrates and Plato, and progressing with the discussion of the ideas represented by the leading philosophers of the modern world.

The Western philosophical tradition is discussed in this book in the most appropriate way, involving the experience of the ancient authors. The Western Philosophy: An Anthology contains one hundred extracts which discuss the philosophical traditions, ideas and concepts from the point of view of understanding by the members of modern society.

The book made the issue under discussion clear and understandable. Frankly speaking, the understanding of the allegory of the cave became possible mainly to the explanation represented in the Western Philosophy: An Anthology. The author made everything possible to clarify all existing vague issues of the philosophical tradition within the history of the mankind.

The allegory of the cave represented and analyzed by the great Greek philosopher Plato who was the student of Socrates. According to some interpretations of the metaphor, the author of the allegory was inspired by the deeds of his teacher to introduce the desire for knowledge and the education of the human mind and soul as a cave where we all are slaves of our blind desires

Damrosch, David, and April Alliston, Marshall Brown, Page duBois, Sabry Hafez, Ursula K. Heise, Djelal Kadir, David L. Pike, Sheldon Pollock, Bruce Robbins, Haruo Shirane, Jane Tylus, Pauline Yu. Longman Anthology of World Literature, The, Compact Edition. London: Longman, 2008.

Longman Anthology of World Literature, The, Compact Edition is written by David Damrosch in cooperation with many other great authors and published by Longman. The book provides a complete selection of the literature from the entire world representing all the periods of the human history in a single volume. All the authors who took part in the creation of this anthology are engaged in teaching and scholarship.

The book is full of different representations of the analyses made by a number of different scholars engaged into the scientific research. The selection of works of literature taken for analyses includes drama and poetry, a great number of translations and interpretations of classic texts. Thus, the whole book contains literary works that are important from the historical point of view as well as from the cultural and philosophical one.

The authors of an anthology made an attempt to show the readers how the major works of the ancient writers influenced the successive authors, how their views and representation of ideas appeared to be of crucial importance not only for their contemporaries but also for their followers and students.

Longman Anthology of World Literature, The, Compact Edition illustrates the progress of the human thought, the development of the cognition and knowledge, the achievements and innovations introduced by the representatives of every period within the human history.

Hall, Robert. Plato. London: Routledge, 2004.

The book Plato is written by Robert Hall and was published by the Routledge. The work is a great guideline for those who want to know more about the ideas of the great Greek philosopher of the ancient times. The book does not discuss the biography of Plato or his life. Instead of description of different intimate issues of the philosopher’s personal life, the book analyzes the ideas of the great thinker, his approach to the study of the world and the development of the contemporary state and society.

The book written by Robert Hall represents a great research made in order to explain the development of the thoughts and ideas introduced by the great Greek. The ideas of Plato progressed as the Athenian democracy developed. The author of the book made an attempt to give a complete explanation to the Plato’s thoughts taking into consideration the changes that resulted in the contemporary political theory.

The allegory of the cave is one of the allegories discussed within the representation of the Plato’s philosophical thoughts about the state, the government, the forms of government, the ideal form of government, and changes that should take place in order to achieve the goals of the ideal state.

The philosophical theory of the great thinker includes also the moral values of the representatives of the contemporary society as well as the features characterizing the citizens of the ideal state with the ideal form of government. The book introduces the discussion of the human soul and its virtues from the point of view of the allegory of the cave represented by Plato to describe the current situation in the democratic Athenian society and the possible changes of the human mind and soul.

Heidegger, Martin, and Ted Sadler. The Essence of Truth: On Plato’s Cave Allegory and Theaetetus. London: Continuum International Publishing Group, 2002.

The book is one of the best books written by Martin Heidegger; it must be considered of his best and most important works because The Essence of Truth: On Plato’s Cave Allegory and Theaetetus lets the reader into the world of the mysteries and implicit meanings. In this specific book Martin Heidegger tried to explain the theme of the philosophical sphere that represents a great value for the philosophers of the modern world and scientists engaged in other branches of the world cognition and comprehension.

This book is the first one and, probably, the only which gives such a bright description and explanation of the philosophical theories of contradictory nature. The authors Martin Heidegger in cooperation with his colleague discuss the diversity of philosophical aspects involved into the concept of truth, “unhiddenness of beings” and “correctness of propositions.”

The Essence of Truth: On Plato’s Cave Allegory and Theaetetus is the book where the authors represent their view of Plato’s ‘educated right opinion’ and discuss the “unhiddenness of beings”. The description of the object in the sunlight is represented as the only right way to analyze the objects. Any other discussion is vague and does not make sense because the real essence of things can be visible only in the light of the sun.

As the cave can be compared to the human soul and mind, it is impossible for individuals to come out of the cave if they cannot see the daylight and cannot judge about the situation in the world just living in the darkness of the cave. The only right way to live as a full-fledged member of the contemporary society is to come out of the cave and analyze everything in the light of the sun.

Lamm, Robert. Humanities in Western Culture, Brief Revised Fourth Edition. London: McGraw-Hill Higher Education, 2004.

Humanities in Western Culture, Brief Revised Fourth Edition is an excellent book written by Robert Lamm and published by McGraw-Hill Higher Education. This book is designed for the students who learn the humanities, mainly the humanities in Western culture.

The book contains a number of literary works represented in the brief form which help the readers to analyze the whole spectrum of the historical expressions of the human culture. The history of the culture of the mankind is represented, discussed and explained from the point of view of the modern society taking into consideration the contemporary culture of the twenty-first century. The selection of the literary works is very diverse and includes a great number of masterpieces representing all the civilizations.

The book is based on the experience of other scientists; they structured the book chronologically. Humanities in Western Culture, Brief Revised Fourth Edition represents the journey from the very beginning of the civilizations, suchlike Ancient Greeks and Egyptians. The author of the book made an attempt to analyze the problems of the earlier civilizations and the approaches which our ancestors were searching in order to solve them.

The author of the book analyzed the achievements of the earlier civilizations from the point of view of the influence in the modern world and the ways of usage throughout the history of the mankind. The book also contains the work written by the great Greek philosopher Plato Republic; this work is analyzed from the point of view of the allegory of the cave.

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