Allegory Of The Cave

In the allegory, Plato introduces the reader to prisoners chained in a cave, unable to turn their heads. The prisoners have been chained at a very young age onto a specific area facing a wall. All they can see is the wall of the cave. The prisoners are clueless to the fact that behind them burns a fire and between the fire and the prisoners is a wall, along which puppeteers can walk. They hold up “puppets”, in this case every day life objects that cast shadows on the wall of the cave. These puppets are considered “forms” or shadows throughout this essay. They are figures we see, but do not question. The prisoners are unable to see these “puppets.” Later on, one of the prisoners is freed and can choose to stay in a world filled with ignorance or rise above it. Plato says, “…liberated and compelled suddenly to stand up and turn his neck round and walk and look towards the light, he will suffer sharp pains; the glare will distress him, and he will be unable to see the realities of which in his former state he had seen the shadows” (868). He's trying to say that once the prisoner is exposed to the truth behind what he always believed to be a reality, he will then deny it and will not want
It takes him time to learn and accept the true realities to life and to put aside what he once believed to be true. As this person grows his intelligence day by day, he reflects back upon the cave but does not want to return. Plato believes, once one has gained enlightenment he should share the truths to those who have yet to learn. In the end Plato goes on with the allegory and says that the freed prisoner goes back into the cave. He tells the prisoners about his findings and these people are denying it all because their ignorance gets the best of them, they even threaten to kill him. The cave shows that those who have high beliefs towards practical knowledge are trapped in a cave of misunderstanding and