Knowledge, Art, And Education in Plato’s Republic

Uncovering the Reality through Philosophical Reasoning

Because human senses are made up of views, it is necessary for humans to reason philosophically in order to uncover the reality in their thoughts. Convincing a person to take a different path that you believe would give them with a better living than their prior endeavors is a difficult task (Stone 23). If you encourage them to buy less items, establish a side job, or invest in a different business venture that will pay a return on their money and thus help them become more free every day, they are likely to fight back and reject the change. Not every human being believes in the possibility change since most of them believe that it is impossible. In that aspect, they would rather work until that day that they would drop dead than to beat the fear of the unknown in its own game and change their current lifestyles. In this paper, I will be arguing in support of the assumptions which were made by Plato about the knowledge and human nature.

The Reality of Life as Described by Plato

The reality of life as described by Plato can be related to the contemporary world using the analogy of taking a blue pill which basically means being a prisoner in life and taking a red pill which literally means being free in life (Stone 15). According to my perspective, I believe that the blue pills in the human life greatly represent those who have been captivated and therefore are only able to see the shadows of reality which is held up by the media, politicians, celebrities, and movies. They, therefore, have a strong belief that everything being presented to them by these institutions and people represent the actual reality of life (Oliveira and de Abreu 206). Based on the nature of the human beings as shown by Plato, I can say that there are very many people who go through life to accept the social norms which they have been shown without truly questioning their validity and effects on their lives. This group of people is two steps removed from the reality since they are only able to witness the shadow of an object which is based on something that is real.

Creation of an Entire Reality for the Prisoners

For that case, I strongly believe that this agenda has significantly led to the creation of an entire reality for the prisoners. That is a truth for them while a glaring falsehood for anyone who is outside the cave. Even though Plato might have been right about the nature of the human beings about their unwillingness to embrace change and fight for their better future, I can show the weakness of this position by indicating that these people have been largely affected by the current situations in the contemporary world (Oliveira and de Abreu 205). A good example which I can state can be based on the fact that if the current environment does not favor the occurrence of fruitful business activities because of political instability or unfavorable environmental conditions, it would not be logical to venture into a business activity which would not bore any fruit in the long run.

The Prisoners’ Perception of the Outside World

Plato categorically reasoned that those prisoners who have been able to have their freedom might have the feeling that the outside world would be much better than the life in the cave. This would make him o be thankful for the change and hence pity those who are still caged. In a situation whereby this prisoner is returned into the cage, he would be blinded by the darkness in the cave, hence would make the other prisoners think that the life outside the cave is not much better (Oliveira and de Abreu 209). To add flesh on this point, I can use the argument which was put across by Socrates who categorically demonstrated that if the prisoners have the ability and power, they would easily kill anybody who would attempt to drag them outside the cave.

The Process of Awakening and the Return to Comfort

I strongly believe that the freed prisoners can be directly compared to the neo which emerged from the pod, to represent the process of awakening. In this aspect, it would be logical if I say that freeing from one from the cave will make him or her to read for days or even weeks in regards to the possibilities but not about what they have been shown in the whole of their lives. This can be a challenging and a painful move for the person to witness the real change, a factor which can always make other faint-hearted people return to their old-time, which will make them more comfortable – the cave as a prisoner (Stone 22).

The Allegory of the Cave and its Relation to Contemporary Issues

I can link the allegory of the cave to the contemporary issues such as religion, politics and in other individual ways. I, therefore, think that it can be related to the way people always think about their financial situations. I am therefore of the idea that if anyone sees a curious soul which is looking for answers to the various questions in life, it would be important to show them the way. It is therefore important to note that all of us were prisoners once in our lives. It is therefore important to show them that they can to be free. They can through off their chains and there after start living under the sun.

Works Cited

Oliveira, Damião Bezerra, and Waldir Ferreira de Abreu. “Knowledge, Art, And Education in Plato’s Republic.” Journals of Philosophy, volume 41, no. 1, 2015, pp. 203-214.

Stone, Abraham. “On The Teaching of Virtue in Plato’s Meno and the Nature of Philosophical Authority.” The New Yearbook for Phenomenology and Phenomenological Philosophy, volume 10, no. 1, 2012, pp. 1-34.