The Allegory of Cave by Plato Analysis

Generally, the cave represents the overall state of humans while the exit from the cave represents an understanding of reality. According to Duarte (2012), Plato’s cave is divided into four main parts which include; the cave, the game, the escape and the return. The parts will be identified and described in this context and the relevance of each part will be shown. First, the cave is said to be dark because of the little space inside and lack of light which makes things inside invisible. There are individuals who are imprisoned inside the cave by being chained on the feet and neck. The prisoners believed that they are real human beings and they even gave them names since that is all they see in their entire lives.

This part is relevant to our lives because it outlines how our opinions are influenced by authority and the people that rule us. Those who have the authority influence our beliefs and attitudes towards certain things since they make us feel that some things are right and others are wrong. The third part of Plato’s cave is the escape. One prisoner manages to break free from the chains and turns around to look at the fire. This part is relevant to our lives since we tend to feel relaxed with what we see and don’t rush to discovering new things. However, when a person gets educated and learns new ideas we always treat such a person with hostility and rage since his ideas are not similar to what the society supports.

Plato’s allegory of Cave addresses different themes. The first theme is the theme of ignorance (Velasquez, 1996). Chains tied to them in the cave represent a metaphor of ignorance. , Lee and Lane, 2007). ” He then continues with his journey to enlightenment by viewing the sun despite facing challenges along the way. This theme is relevant to today’s life because it shows how people tend to strive and find the truth after being given directions on the right path to follow. Students in today’s world work extra hard after getting guidance from their teachers so that they can excel in their exams and stand out in the job market. The third theme is the theme of hostility. This aspect is omitted because the images changed their appearance from time to time due to the flame produced by the fire.