Ancient philosophical influences Flashcards
What did Plato believe was the key to unlocking the greater reality beyond the world we experience?
A priori reasoning.
Describe Plato’s analogy of the cave
Plato asks us to imagine that a group of prisoners are chained in an underground cave. They have been there since birth and are chained by their necks and ankles. They can only see the shadows projected on the wall by a fire. They believe that the shadows are all that exists. If one day a prisoner were released and were to venture outside the cave, once his sight had adjusted he would realise that it was the outside world that was real and that the cave itself was just a shadow world. If the prisoner were to return and attempt to pass on his new knowledge, Plato argues that he would not be believed and the other prisoners might even threaten to kill him.
What do the prisoners in Plato’s allegory of the cave represent ?
Ordinary people in our world.
What does the cave represent in Plato’s allegory of the cave?
The empirical world that we see and hear around us.
What do the chains in Plato’s allegory of the cave represent ?
The senses that restrict the way we experience things.
What do the shadows in Plato’s allegory of the cave represent ?
Our everyday sense experiences.
What does the escapee in Plato’s allegory of the cave represent ?
The philosopher who is able to access knowledge.
What does the difficult ascent in Plato’s allegory of the cave represent?
An illustration that the road to philosophical knowledge is hard.
What does the outside world in Plato’s allegory of the cave represent?
The real world, the World of the Forms.
What does the sun in Plato’s allegory of the cave represent ?
The highest of all of the forms, the form of the good.
What does the return to the cave in Plato’s allegory of the cave represent?
The philosopher once enlightened feels it is his duty to free and educate the others.
What does the difficulty adjusting to the darkness in Plato’s allegory of the cave represent?
Once a philosopher knows the truth, it is difficult to experience things as the ordinary person does.
What does the persecution given by the other prisoners in Plato’s allegory of the cave represent?
Like Socrates, who was executed by the leaders in the Athens, the philosopher will be ridiculed and threatened.
