Hunter Seales

Professor Maya Alapin

English 220-023
2 October, 2015
Platos light for Education
The Allegory of the Cave is a fascinating thought experiment,
and simile, to the concepts of education and ignorance that plagues
the minds of the common man. There is grand disparity between the
minds of the educated and those that seek to revel in their ignorance,
and it is brilliantly highlighted by Platos allegory and in his discussion
with Glaucon. Man ought to seek to turn their heads from the
metaphorical ignorance, and ponder that which is around them; pursue
the concepts that lie beyond mere physical perception.
Imagine yourself stranded in a cold dark unconscious cave,
hands and feet chained disabling you too move left or right and all you
are able to see are the shadows drawn upon the wall in front of you.
Locked in tight, unable to break free you are cemented to this position
your entire life. This is the setting of "Plato's Allegory of The Cave".
There is grand disparity between the minds of the educated and those
that seek to revel in their ignorance, and it is brilliantly highlighted by
Plato's allegory and in his discussion with Glaucon. Man ought to seek

to turn their heads from the metaphorical ignorance, and ponder that
which is around them; pursue the concepts that lie beyond mere
physical perception.
My new introduction applies a better image to draw the readers
attention and allows the reader get a better feel of what the cave may
look like. I think this is important when writing my introduction because
when I read story's that I can picture in my head at the beginning it
makes me want to keep reading.
Platos Allegory of The Cave brings to light a striking hypothetical
scenario. One in which men are chained and bound and fed an illusion
of reality for the duration of their lives. One that is only proven through
the means of their own observation. As expected, this concept is
dangerous. These men know not the truth of life, nor the humanity of
which they are a part of. They only know frivolous shadows, darkness
and echoes of the voices of gods. A metaphor, this all stands to be, of
the likes of men who do not seek the world past what is laid before
their own eyes. The men in this scenario form competitions, games and
awards based around the movement of the shadows, their patterns
and assumed motions. It is all they know, but this allegory is shaken to
its core as one hypothetical man is taken to the surface, dragged
forcibly to the burning, seething light of the true world above. This is a
metaphor for the searing pain the soul can endure for reaching up to
seek the truths of humanity and the world. It can be humbling,

painfully so, to realize the nature of man, the world, and ones
surroundings. The chained mans initial reaction to being brought to
the light is one of agony and pain; to desire at first to reject such a
notion and return to what he once knew as truth. But as humans tend
to reject change, so too does this man, but as time passes and he
spends more time exposed to this light, he grows accustomed. The
author states, He becomes comfortable, and he begins to learn
(Duarte 76). Plato calls learning the highest act of man; to seek
knowledge beyond that which we can see, and achieve the same
enlightenment as the gods themselves. Being brought to the fire that
cast the shadows is only the first step for the hypothetical men, for
when they are brought into the light of the sun, they are truly exposed
to reality.
As the allegory goes, the man is brought into the light and
accustoms himself to that which is most familiar at first. The shadows
of objects, then their reflections, then the objects themselves. Plato
however goes a step beyond the objects themselves, and speaks of
how the veil and comfort of night brings the man to contemplate that
of the heavens and the stars, and consider his place in them. At this
point, he surmises the man is philosophizing, and that this revelation
within him will drive him beyond that of those he once dwelled with. He
is said to have gone back down to the cave, and attempt once more to
partake in the games and activities of the men he once shared his life

with. But he is unfamiliar, his eyes seared by the light of the sun, to the
shadows along the wall, knowing that with produces and creates them.
He is ridiculed by the ignorant for his inability within their capacity, for
he is in a place beyond these men and cannot comprehend the world
in the same way they do. This is an interesting approach to describing
the effects of education and philosophy. Effectively, he speaks of
enlightenment as a one way street. This rings true, as man finds
himself in a place where the same knowledge is not as apparent, he
can become uncomfortable. But more than just that, the passage
proceeds beyond merely stepping into the sun and understanding all
that is, but Plato states the responsibility of those who have seen the
sun; and that it is to step back into the depths of human ignorance and
endure ridicule, endure shame and endure threat, but for the noble
purpose of turning souls and minds to the same direction that the
enlightened came from.
Enlightenment consist of one knowing the secrets of the world
and their origins; to understand that which is around and to know ones
place in it. To Plato, this is the highest aspect of man, a turning of the
soul to perfection, almost, for education. It is important to note,
however, is that Plato specifically mentions the capacity of every man
to achieve the same state of enlightenment as even the greatest
philosophers (Plato). It is a matter of being taught how to learn, and to
indulge in the non-physical and imperceptible truths of the world. But

what does it mean to be enlightened, to be educated by that of

philosophy? Socrates answers this question with his discussion with
Glaucon. They discuss things that the men of the world learn, and two
concepts come to mind: Gymnastics and poetry. Through their
musings, they find that these are only the structure of words and the
acts of the body; not the inherent truths of the world surrounding
them. They do not bolster understanding of the gods or their intellect,
nor do they improve the mind or turn the soul to a better place. From
this, we can determine that it is about understanding rather than
knowledge that drives the mind to higher places, and that this is
achieved only through the pondering of the greater world; that beyond
that which our senses can detect. Mathematics, questions of morality
and the soul are only a pair of concepts discussed by Plato and
Glaucon
What is important to know about this entire allegory is that it
does not end when the man steps into the light of the sun and grows
accustomed. The allegory consists again of a further reality, the true
burden of the enlightened. Once accustomed to the light of the sun, or
to the concepts of the unseen metaphysical world, the enlightened are
granted a further burden: To instruct those from where he came in the
same manner. To be the force that causes one to rise from their
ignorance and step into the light as they have. But Plato warns that it
is not simply akin to putting knowledge into souls that lack it, like

putting sight into blind eyes (Plato). In an article mentioned by

Byum, he instead states that it is turning their minds much like that
of a rebirth, and this is further expounded upon in the reading where
Glaucon and Plato discuss the potential of the ignorant to kill the
enlightened that tries to bring them out from their cave and their petty
awards (Byum). This explains the enlightened ones are being
brought down by the uneducated, because one has to make the
decision too, not be forced. In an article the author states, He speaks
with a voice laced with one part pity and one part disdain that they do
not understand the intentions of those that step back into the darkness
in order to bring their fellow man into the light which they have
experienced (Duarte 79-84). This, truly, is the burden of the
enlightened and the philosophers. But odd is the fact that it is
described as a burden, for Plato expresses the idea that fully
enlightened is not the man who stares into the sun with comfort, but
rather the man who stares into the sun and retreats to the cave to
enlighten his fellow man, no matter the risk.
Plato and Glaucon delve into a brief detour from the girth of the
discussion on education, but it is no less relevant. Their discussion
turns to that of leadership and how it is best suited for those who are
less willing to rule. Why do they come to this conclusion? It is the
reason that understanding brings that causes one to be wary of ruling.
Those who desire to rule do not understand that ruler ship is not a

career or an office of prestige; but that it is a burden to bear, having

men stand below and take order from your words alone. They say it is
a burden because the suitors of politics, those who desire to rule, will
compete and vie for rulership, and as a result generate chaos and civil
war. This discussion serves as a beautiful bridge between the
discussion of politic-hating philosophy and the type of knowledge that
brings about enlightenment. It is from here we see Plato reveal his
thoughts on what type of learning facilitates the ascent from darkness,
and that is understanding.
Plato has given an almost perfect metaphor to the concept of
learning to understand. That the pursuit of the ideas beyond our
perceptions allows us to enter a plane of knowledge far beyond the
darkness of man. For this, the price to pay is the tolerance of those
who still remain on the plane below the enlightened, but Plato pushes
beyond this barrier and commands the enlightened to step back down
and help guide the masses to the same level, that we may live in a
grander society and a better world amongst a people that understand
what is, more than just what they see. The Allegory of the Cave is a
fascinating thought experiment, and simile, to the concepts of
education and ignorance that plagues the minds of the common man.

Works Cited

Bloom, Alan. The Republic of Plato. 2nd Ed. New York: Basic Books,
1991. Print.
Byum, S. (2010), The Concept of Philosophical Education. Educational
Theory, 60:
543-559, Doi: 10.1111/j.1741-5446.2010.00376.x
Duarte, Eduardo Manuel. Being and Learning: A Poetic Phenomenology
of Education.
Rotterdam: Sense, 2012. Print.