Once we stop, can we accept the more real outside world, which is the true (albeit harsher) world, or will we run back into the cave out of fear of accepting the truth?
Watch the following videos (They are short enough to repeat if you must).
In the first video, ask yourself what the cave might symbolize. Also, answer these questions:
What are the images on the wall?
Who could the people manipulating the images be?
What might the chains symbolize?
What if you were the one released?
For more on Plato's Allegory of the Cave, see the texbook, Thinking Critically, 9th Ed., by John Chaffee.
Discussion about this topic is on p. 189
As you explore the questions above, consider the following questions taken from the Thinking Critically text:
- Explain how the images projected on the back wall of Plato's cave are similar to the images we see on television or in newspapers, magazines, and books **AND THE INTERNET**.
- Why do the people in Plato's cave believe that the perceptual images they see projected on the wall are "real"? Why do many people who watch television and read information sources uncritically believe that what they are viewing or reading about is "real"?
- At the start of our journey from the dark depths of ignorance toward the illumination of understanding, it is essential to recognize that the perceptions we encounter in our daily lives are often incomplete, inaccurate, and distorted. Explain why.
- In Plato's allegory, discarding ignorant beliefs and embracing the truth can be a disturbing process because we are forced to see things objectively, as they really are, rather than shrouded in bias and distortion. Describe an experience of your own in which achieving a knowledgeable, truthful insight was a disturbing experience.
Here's another video to consider as you explore your answers to the questions above
Everyone believes something. Everyone has a philosophy of life (Chapter 12).
"The challenge you face is to create a coherent view of the world that expresses who you are as well as the person you want to become." - Thinking Critically, p. 430
THINK CRITICALLY LIVE CREATIVELY CHOOSE FREELY
