The Allegory of the Cave Psychology Essay Term Paper

The Allegory of the Cave
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Institution
The Allegory of the Cave
Plato in his allegory of the cave tries to explain the experiences of an individual in their path to enlightenment. It is filled with challenges, but the desire to know more makes an individual endure the painful process.
After reading the Allegory, one thing that is clear to me is that becoming an enlightened person is a complicated process which requires the utmost patience. This is clearly illustrated in the analogy between Socrates and Glaucon where Socrates compares an enlightened person to a freed prisoner. The prisoners in the cave represent our society as a whole, and the freed prisoner represents the individuals who get enlightened. The reason why I say that the path to enlightenment is a difficult process is that individuals go through challenges, as illustrated by Plato. For instance, Plato indicates that once a prisoner is freed, they are likely to look at the light with pain and wish to go back to what they were accustomed to. The same case applies to an individual who is in the path of enlightenment because initially, they are not accustomed to the new insights they are getting, and as such, they are likely to resist. It is an indication that individuals sometimes prefer ignorance to enlightenment because ignorance is easier.
Further, being in that state of ignorance since childhood makes it easier because the individual's view of the world is limited. This makes the process of enlightenment difficult, and some assistance is necessary. This assis...