Plato’s Allegory of the Cave

• What is the allegory of the cave?

  There are prisoners held in the cave, they can only see shadows on the wall. There is a staircase leading to the outside, and people have escaped to the 'real' world.
• What does Plato's allegory of the cave symbolise?

  We see our world as the shadows, we are disconnected from the real world, trapped in an illusion. We are so content with what we currently experience that we have no desire to seek for something better. In a modern context this could represent the shadows as people's phones, social media, or television and the real world being outside; real life communication and experiences rather than living everything through a screen. The people that have escaped the cave are experiencing the real world, we should all do that.
• How should the people who escaped tell the prisoners about the real world?

  Slowly tell people, don't be blunt because otherwise they will not listen. Help people learn by being understanding NOT patronising
• According to Plato, where does true knowledge come from?

  True knowledge cannot come from our senses because we cannot trust them - true knowledge comes from thinking and reasoning. Only knowledge will help us escape the cave of shadows and truly understand the world. Knowledge is the difference between being trapped in the trivial matters of evidence or understanding the reality of the world around us
• How do we gain the knowledge?

  It is innate and comes from the world of forms
• What is the World of Forms?

  There is a form for everything. For every circle, there is a perfect circle. For every number 2, there is a perfect number 2. We were born with innate knowledge but our senses stop us from seeing those ideas clearly, that's why our circle or number 2 is not perfect but a different idea of it
• How does the soul relate to the world of forms?

  The soul that we all possess lived in the world of perfect forms prior to entering this world. As the soul entered the world, it travelled through the river of forgetfulness.
• What is the purpose of the soul according to Plato?

  To bring you back to that perfect understanding of the world. The soul is trying to get you out of the cave, in order to see the real world by reminding you of the perfect forms
• What is the story of the charioteer?

  The soul is the charioteer who is guiding the horses and chariot. The soul understands perfection and tries to steer the body to a better life but the body resists
• What evidence does Plato have?

  1. Innate knowledge

  2. Cycle of opposites. Everything has an opposite, eg life comes from death and death comes from life so we know there is immortality of the soul