Plato and the Allegory of the Cave Essay

Open, View, and/or
Download this Document

Total Length: 666 words ( 2 double-spaced pages)

Total Sources: 0

Page 1 of 2

Allegory of the Cave

This was a philosophical allegory that Plato put forth to try explain the individual understanding of ideas and objects. He put forth a fictitious cave that has sun light projected to the inside through an opening that served as the entrance to the cave. Within the cave were prisoners who were chained such that they always faced the far end wall without being able to turn their heads backwards. A flame was lit and between the flame and the prisoners was a path that passed through the cave to the other side. This path was well raised that all the objects that passed there, animate and inanimate had their silhouettes projected on the wall of the cave in front of the prisoners. All their life, these prisoners know the objects passing behind them through the projections on the wall. Then it so happened that one prisoner was set free from the cave, he ran out and his eyes were blinded by the sun, but upon acquitting himself with the light, he started seeing people and objects in their real forms and not the cast shadows as was the case in the cave. The person was so amazed that he ran back to the cave to tell the other prisoners of the new discovery, they of course could not understand him, and indeed telling them that the shadows cast that they were seeing were not the actual objects was far beyond their comprehension since that is all they knew in life and that is what shaped their conception of the truth.

Stuck Writing Your "Plato and the Allegory of the Cave" Essay?

View All Our Example Plato and the Allegory of the Cave Essay

Have A Custom Example Essay Written



I agree with Plato that everything we see is merely an imitation and at times it is twice removed from the ideal or actual object that is, being an imitation of an imitation. Plato referred to what we see as mimesis, or the mimes of the ideal objects and that the ideal objects are always in idea which man cannot obtain. The world around us shapes our perception and….....

Show More ⇣

     Open the full completed essay and source list


OR

     Order a one-of-a-kind custom essay on this topic


sample essay writing service

Cite This Resource:

Latest APA Format (6th edition)

Copy Reference
"Plato And The Allegory Of The Cave" (2014, July 06) Retrieved June 30, 2025, from
https://www.aceyourpaper.com/essays/plato-allegory-cave-190339

Latest MLA Format (8th edition)

Copy Reference
"Plato And The Allegory Of The Cave" 06 July 2014. Web.30 June. 2025. <
https://www.aceyourpaper.com/essays/plato-allegory-cave-190339>

Latest Chicago Format (16th edition)

Copy Reference
"Plato And The Allegory Of The Cave", 06 July 2014, Accessed.30 June. 2025,
https://www.aceyourpaper.com/essays/plato-allegory-cave-190339
   

Open, View, and/or
Download this Document
order custom essay example