The Republic of Plato Book VII: A Close Analysis

Socrates continues the conversation with Glaucon and now focuses on the obligation of the guardians and philosophers to serve the people as a result of their education. Socrates describes people in a cave since birth, bound so they can only see what is in front of them. There are shadows and sounds that can be observed but the source is unknown. Socrates says in 515c, “…such men would hold that the truth is nothing other than the shadows of artificial things.” Their reality is limited by their experience. Then a prisoner is freed from the bonds and is forced to look at the fire and the statues that were used to cast the shadows on the walls. He is overwhelmed by the revelations and learns that the shadows were not the reality. Socrates says in 515d, “Don’t you suppose he’d be at a loss and believe that what was seen before is truer than what is now shown?” It is painful for him to learn and recalibrate his world. He wants to cling to the stability and simple nature of what he knew before, but he now understands the statues and fire as the new reality. This would equate to the transition from childhood to adulthood, or from a basic laborer to a supervisory role of responsibility. Finally he is dragged out of the cave into the world. The sun is so brilliant he cannot look at it or anything on the surface of the world. He does not want to be dragged (forced to learn) and cannot comprehend everything he is being exposed to. He is initially overwhelmed by the intensity but eventually grows accustomed to the light and sees the real things – people, trees, sun, stars, etc. He is enlightened (educated) and understands now that the statues were just representative of these real things, as the shadows were representative of the statues. His knowledge and understanding increases with each level he is raised up (from bonds, to the cave, to the surface). He can now even understand how these real things interact and draw conclusions from his observations; that the sun