Compare Plato's Allegory Of The Cave Then And Now
Brayden Schoonmaker
Music 201
Schoon24
Plato’s Allegory of the Cave; Then and Now Throughout history, men and women have continued to strive for excellence and to push the boundaries of what is known in the current age. From Asia to the Americas we have people that we study and pursue to be like, thus giving people inspiration to achieve greatness. As we look into the 1500s we see someone who sticks out to us as a pioneer for knowledge and philosophy: Plato. As we look into “The Allegory of the Cave” by Plato, we compare how Plato and this piece viewed knowledge gained through the senses as merely an opinion; however, we would disagree today and show Plato that knowledge can be obtained through the senses as a credible, concrete fact. The Greeks at the time of Plato, Socrates, and Aristotle had implied philosophy was the only way of obtaining knowledge. As we read “The Allegory of the Cave,” we start to understand the way Plato had come to believe the only way to truly understand knowledge is through Philosophy. Plato uses his “The Allegory of the Cave” to symbolize mankind’s misperceptions of reality that result from superstition and falsehood, and to suggest that the philosopher, who thrives in the light of reason and intellect, is uniquely positioned to educate others and liberate them from beliefs that prevent them from acquiring truth. We can then understand the thinking of the Greeks around 1500 A.D. Philosophy was quickly gaining respect from the educational community for profound thinking and statements, which highlighted thoughts from Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle. Philosophy was not only respected by the Greek community, but also highly reverenced for its seemingly factual knowledge that was newly discovered. Although in the 1500s many would agree with Plato and say that he is a genius, coming up with the revolutionary idea that knowledge can only come through philosophy and not from the senses. However, in this current age, we would mainly rely
Music 201
Schoon24
Plato’s Allegory of the Cave; Then and Now Throughout history, men and women have continued to strive for excellence and to push the boundaries of what is known in the current age. From Asia to the Americas we have people that we study and pursue to be like, thus giving people inspiration to achieve greatness. As we look into the 1500s we see someone who sticks out to us as a pioneer for knowledge and philosophy: Plato. As we look into “The Allegory of the Cave” by Plato, we compare how Plato and this piece viewed knowledge gained through the senses as merely an opinion; however, we would disagree today and show Plato that knowledge can be obtained through the senses as a credible, concrete fact. The Greeks at the time of Plato, Socrates, and Aristotle had implied philosophy was the only way of obtaining knowledge. As we read “The Allegory of the Cave,” we start to understand the way Plato had come to believe the only way to truly understand knowledge is through Philosophy. Plato uses his “The Allegory of the Cave” to symbolize mankind’s misperceptions of reality that result from superstition and falsehood, and to suggest that the philosopher, who thrives in the light of reason and intellect, is uniquely positioned to educate others and liberate them from beliefs that prevent them from acquiring truth. We can then understand the thinking of the Greeks around 1500 A.D. Philosophy was quickly gaining respect from the educational community for profound thinking and statements, which highlighted thoughts from Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle. Philosophy was not only respected by the Greek community, but also highly reverenced for its seemingly factual knowledge that was newly discovered. Although in the 1500s many would agree with Plato and say that he is a genius, coming up with the revolutionary idea that knowledge can only come through philosophy and not from the senses. However, in this current age, we would mainly rely