Comparing Plato's Allegory Of The Cave 'And'

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Edwin George English Literature and Composition AP Period 5 August 31, 2015 Plato’s Allegory of the Cave and The Myth of Sisyphus Questions 1. Why would some of the people of Athens be antagonistic to Plato’s story? They might be antagonistic to Plato’s allegory because it essentially is saying that the people of earth are the same as the people in the darkness. As Plato writes that those who live in the darkness would destroy and maim anyone that comes back from the light, the Athenians may interpret the allegory as a work that espouses their idiocy. Moreover, Plato’s words, especially in the final paragraph, state that professors are wrong in that they cannot put a knowledge into the soul that was not there before. This statement causes two…show more content…
On the other hand, Sisyphus viewed himself as the most important of all things, much more important than his duties. For example, when making a deal with a god, Esopus, Sisyphus decided to get something in return: water. As Albert Camus explains, however, Sisyphus’s actions demonstrate that he preferred the water to the thunderbolts of Jupiter, the ruler of the gods. His simple action, however, proves, very important to his existentialist nature. Where he normally should have abstained from interfering with Esopus and Jupiter’s feud, Sisyphus decided to join, aiding Esopus, who was not the king of the gods, just because it would benefit him (Sisyphus). Thus, Sisyphus looks solely for events or opportunities that will benefit him. A second example of Sisyphus valuing the self over all other matters occurs in his stint in the underworld. After he dies and is in the underworld, Sisyphus cheats death and goes back to life after making a compromise with Pluto, which he does not honor. In this scenario, Sisyphus completely shirks his duty to return to the underworld in order to continue his life. Therefore, he values himself over the duty that he ought to have done. His existence precedes the essence of the underworld, and he refuses to go back until taken by
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