The Allegory Of The Cave

The Allegory Of The Cave

The allegory of the cave is a perfect example of how we live our lives. The cave is the world we live in, we are the prisoners, the flame is the knowledge or wisdom being offered by the outside world of the cave.

 The prisoners in the cave, assumed that the world they live in is reality when in fact they would not know reality even if their struck by it! It’s because they do not know anything else, all they know is that the world where they were born into, grew up in, is what they are all used to. In there, they have formed a camaraderie with one another, sharing the same beliefs. That belief was never questioned for why would they question anything when no one knows any other way of life?

 As Socrates mentioned, what if one of them was released from that bleak existence, into a world of light? How would he react and how would he feel? At first, he will surely be scared! When we are being presented with something we are not used to, even with courage, we would still be afraid. It is only natural for the newly released prisoner to be disoriented and nervous. These negative emotions will soon be toppled by mirth. He will be joyous, exuberant to some extent, because he has been enlightened! It would take some time but he would learn to take it all in, one little step at a time. He would savor every drop of it in order to quench his thirst for knowledge. Then another reality struck him, with all the wisdom pouring into him, he would suddenly realized, that free as he is now, his old fellow prisoners are still prisoners with no knowledge of the outside world. He would sympathize with them and decide to go back so as he may impart what he learned. He would stumble his way back inside the cave that he is not used to anymore. He would tell them what has transpired when he was outside, make it known to them that they have been living in a world of lies and that the truth is out there, waiting to be discovered.  How would they react to his monologue of the outside world? He would most likely be shunned. looked down on, even talked down to. For them, he is talking gibberish. How can they believe this mere guy when it is only his words against their empirical evidences i.e. sense of sight, sense of hearing and the rest of their senses? It is such a pity that this one person who wanted to be of help in enlightening them will end up being mocked because he is talking about the unknown to them!

 We are somewhat similar to these prisoners.  ”What you see is what you get and to see is to believe”, some of the old cliches that come to mind. We often believe that what can be seen is mostly what is true or factual since we have one of our senses to prove it. We are also like them because we would rather stay within our comfort and safety zones by living our monotonous life for it is easy and simple. What is not known to us, we mock and evade. We refrain from asking questions because we might not like the answers. 

 ”Living simply means searching for what you yourself believe and struggling with fundamental questions”, according to Helen Buss Mitchell. Just like what Socrates said, “An unexamined life is not worth living”.  If you want to be enlightened and not end up becoming like these prisoners in the cave, ask questions, put them to tests, use empirical evidences and process all the information and wisdom you have acquired in your mind and use your reasoning to come up with an answer that has been tried and tested and with no loopholes. You will find your broad minded self more accepting of the unknown and more logical when coming up with conclusions, you will not be swayed by anything because your reasoning is not deceiving.