Plato's Allegory Of The Cave

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Plato associates knowledge with goodness and intelligence. The Analogy of the Sun is Plato’s way of explaining how the sun is our source of what’s good in the world. First the sun is our source of light and visibility in this world. When we can see things clearly we are able to see the good in them. For Plato knowledge comes from understanding the form of good. He explains that the form of good is like the sun because they both allow us to see things clearly. Sight cannot exist without the sun. We cannot see in the dark but when light shines on an object we are able to distinguish it. The form of good says that everything exists because it has value. The form of good is further explained with the divided line. The analogy of the divided line explains how our understanding of the world is separated. Plato explains that there are two supreme powers; one of them is the intellectual world and the other is the visible. The line is divided into four segments. Two of them represent imagination and belief, which are part of the visible world. Belief and imagination allow us to think that what we see is the ultimate truth when in reality it is just a distraction. The next two segments represent what Plato sees as knowledge. Thought and understanding allow us to…show more content…
In the story humans are tied up to the wall of the cave. Everything they see is shadows and they think that is real. When one of them escapes he is able to see the light of day for the first time and see reality. “The prison-house is the world of sight, the light of the fire is the sun, and you will not misapprehend me if you interpret the journey upwards to be the ascent of the soul into the intellectual world” (Plato’s Republic). The journey out of the cave is our journey into knowledge. Not everyone escapes the cave, but when one does we can’t help but feel bad for those we left

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