Plato's Allegory Of The Cave

Plato’s Allegory of the Cave expresses his thoughts on how people are easily content with what they have and are very quick to dismiss anything that will bring about a change. He does this by telling the story through the eyes of his deceased friend Socrates. As the title suggests, the entire text is an allegory that details how most are against enlightenment. Other rhetorical devices such as symbolism and metaphors are heavily spread throughout the text.

Plato’s descriptions of the cave are an example of imagery. He describes just how dark everything was and mentioned how the layout of the cave did not allow the prisoners to see very well. He also proceeds to describe how the walls “carried all sorts of vessels, and statues and figures of

animals made of wood and stone and various materials.” This sentence is also an example of personification, as it is obvious that walls cannot carry anything, for that is a human trait. Plato continues providing more imagery when he describes what would happen if a prisoner were to escape and see the light for the first time.
The allegory is also full of symbolism and metaphors.

The darkness of the cave represents the constraints of society, while the prisoners are meant to be the members of that society. The shadows symbolizes the ideals and morals within the community. The light outside of the cave can be interpreted as enlightenment and freedom from ignorance. When describing what a prisoner will experience when he exits the cave, Plato writes, “...look towards the light, he will suffer sharp pains; the glare will distress him… his eye is turned towards more real existence, he has a clearer vision.” This sentence describes the gradual process of absorbing a new reality. When a person’s entire perspective is being changed, it will be very difficult to take it all in at once. With time, everything becomes clearer, exactly like the change from darkness to brightness. Glaucon himself can be viewed as a symbol of mindless sheep within society. He simply agrees with everything that Socrates says, offering nothing more than agreements to his questions. Glaucon gives no rebuttals or thoughts of his own, only going along with whatever Socrates is saying. However, Glaucon can also be interpreted as simply absorbing everything Socrates is telling him, like master and

student.
The Allegory of the Cave is without a doubt a very interesting allegory. With a keen and open mind, many conclusions are able to be drawn that make us question our own reality. The analogies that Plato used to display Socrates’s point of view create a vivid picture in the readers’ minds thanks to the imagery and symbolism throughout. They definitely make the point being made much easier to understand. The allegory also supports several themes, such as knowledge is power and ignorance is bliss. It truly reveals how humans can be content while being completely blind and reject anything that challenges their ideals.