Plato
“Allegory of the Cave” (The Republic, Book VII, 514a-521d)
[Socrates]
And
now,
I
said,
let
me
show
in
a
figure
how
far
our
nature
is
enlightened
or
unenlightened:
--Behold!
human
beings
living
in
a
underground
cave,
which
has
a
mouth
open
towards
the
light
and
reaching
all
along
the
cave;
here
they
have
been
from
their
childhood,
and
have
their
legs
and
necks
chained
so
that
they
cannot
move,
and
can
only
see
before
them,
being
prevented
by
the
chains
from
turning
round
their
heads.
Above
and
behind
them
a
fire
is
blazing
at
a
distance,
and
between
the
fire
and
the
prisoners
there
is
a
raised
way;
and
you
will
see,
if
you
look,
a
low
wall
built
along
the
way,
like
the
screen
which
marionette
players
have
in
front
of
them,
over
which
they
show
the
puppets.
[Glaucon]
I
see.
[Socrates]
And
do
you
see,
I
said,
men
passing
along
the
wall
carrying
all
sorts
of
vessels,
and
statues
and
figures
of
animals
made
of
wood
and
stone
and
various
materials,
which
appear
over
the
wall?
Some
of
them
are
talking,
others
silent.
[Glaucon]
You
have
shown
me
a
strange
image,
and
they
are
strange
prisoners.
[Socrates]
Like
ourselves,
I
replied;
and
they
see
only
their
own
shadows,
or
the
shadows
of
one
another,
which
the
fire
throws
on
the
opposite
wall
of
the
cave?
[Glaucon]
True,
he
said;
how
could
they
see
anything
but
the
shadows
if
they
were
never
allowed
to
move
their
heads?
[Socrates]
And
of
the
objects
which
are
being
carried
in
like
manner
they
would
only
see
the
shadows?
[Glaucon]
Yes,
he
said.
[Socrates]
And
if
they
were
able
to
converse
with
one
another,
would
they
not
suppose
that
they
were
naming
what
was
actually
before
them?
[Glaucon]
Very
true.
[Socrates]
And
suppose
further
that
the
prison
had
an
echo
which
came
from
the
other
side,
would
they
not
be
sure
to
fancy
when
one
of
the
passers-by
spoke
that
the
voice
which
they
heard
came
from
the
passing
shadow?
[Glaucon]
No
question,
he
replied.
[Socrates]
To
them,
I
said,
the
truth
would
be
literally
nothing
but
the
shadows
of
the
images.
[Glaucon]
That
is
certain.
[Socrates]
And
now
look
again,
and
see
what
will
naturally
follow
if
the
prisoners
are
released
and
disabused
of
their
error.
At
first,
when
any
of
them
is
liberated
and
compelled
suddenly
to
stand
up
and
turn
his
neck
round
and
walk
and
look
towards
the
light,
he
will
suffer
sharp
pains;
the
glare
will
distress
him,
and
he
will
be
unable
to
see
the
realities
of
which
in
his
former
state
he
had
seen
the
shadows;
and
then
conceive
some
one
saying
to
him,
that
what
he
saw
before
was
an
illusion,
but
that
now,
when
he
is
approaching
nearer
to
being
and
his
eye
is
turned
towards
more
real
existence,
he
has
a
clearer
vision,
-what
will
be
his
reply?
And
you
may
further
imagine
that
his
instructor
is
pointing
to
the
objects
as
they
pass
and
requiring
him
to
name
them,
-will
he
not
be
perplexed?
Will
he
not
fancy
that
the
shadows
which
he
formerly
saw
are
truer
than
the
objects
which
are
now
shown
to
him?
[Glaucon]
Far
truer.
[Socrates]
And
if
he
is
compelled
to
look
straight
at
the
light,
will
he
not
have
a
pain
in
his
eyes
which
will
make
him
turn
away
to
take
and
take
in
the
objects
of
vision
which
he
can
see,
and
which
he
will
conceive
to
be
in
reality
clearer
than
the
things
which
are
now
being
shown
to
him?
[Glaucon]
True,
he
now.
[Socrates]
And
suppose
once
more,
that
he
is
reluctantly
dragged
up
a
steep
and
rugged
ascent,
and
held
fast
until
he
's
forced
into
the
presence
of
the
sun
himself,
is
he
not
likely
to
be
pained
and
irritated?
When
he
approaches
the
light
his
eyes
will
be
dazzled,
and
he
will
not
be
able
to
see
anything
at
all
of
what
are
now
called
realities.
[Glaucon]
Not
all
in
a
moment,
he
said.
[Socrates]
He
will
require
to
grow
accustomed
to
the
sight
of
the
upper
world.
And
first
he
will
see
the
shadows
best,
next
the
reflections
of
men
and
other
objects
in
the
water,
and
then
the
objects
themselves;
then
he
will
gaze
upon
the
light
of
the
moon
and
the
stars
and
the
spangled
heaven;
and
he
will
see
the
sky
and
the
stars
by
night
better
than
the
sun
or
the
light
of
the
sun
by
day?
[Glaucon]
Certainly.
[Socrates]
Last
of
he
will
be
able
to
see
the
sun,
and
not
mere
reflections
of
him
in
the
water,
but
he
will
see
him
in
his
own
proper
place,
and
not
in
another;
and
he
will
contemplate
him
as
he
is.
[Glaucon]
Certainly.
[Socrates]
He
will
then
proceed
to
argue
that
this
is
he
who
gives
the
season
and
the
years,
and
is
the
guardian
of
all
that
is
in
the
visible
world,
and
in
a
certain
way
the
cause
of
all
things
which
he
and
his
fellows
have
been
accustomed
to
behold?
[Glaucon]
Clearly,
he
said,
he
would
first
see
the
sun
and
then
reason
about
him.
[Socrates]
And
when
he
remembered
his
old
habitation,
and
the
wisdom
of
the
cave
and
his
fellow-prisoners,
do
you
not
suppose
that
he
would
felicitate
himself
on
the
change,
and
pity
them?
[Glaucon]
Certainly,
he
would.
[Socrates] And if they were in the habit of conferring honors among themselves on those who were quickest to observe the passing shadows and to remark which of them went before, and which followed after, and which were together; and who were therefore best able to draw conclusions as to the future, do you think that he would care for such honors and glories, or envy the possessors of them? Would he not say with Homer,
Better to be the poor servant of a poor master,
and
to
endure
anything,
rather
than
think
as
they
do
and
live
after
their
manner?
[Glaucon]
Yes,
he
said,
I
think
that
he
would
rather
suffer
anything
than
entertain
these
false
notions
and
live
in
this
miserable
manner.
[Socrates]
Imagine
once
more,
I
said,
such
an
one
coming
suddenly
out
of
the
sun
to
be
replaced
in
his
old
situation;
would
he
not
be
certain
to
have
his
eyes
full
of
darkness?
[Glaucon]
To
be
sure,
he
said.
[Socrates]
And
if
there
were
a
contest,
and
he
had
to
compete
in
measuring
the
shadows
with
the
prisoners
who
had
never
moved
out
of
the
cave,
while
his
sight
was
still
weak,
and
before
his
eyes
had
become
steady
(and
the
time
which
would
be
needed
to
acquire
this
new
habit
of
sight
might
be
very
considerable)
would
he
not
be
ridiculous?
Men
would
say
of
him
that
up
he
went
and
down
he
came
without
his
eyes;
and
that
it
was
better
not
even
to
think
of
ascending;
and
if
any
one
tried
to
loose
another
and
lead
him
up
to
the
light,
let
them
only
catch
the
offender,
and
they
would
put
him
to
death.
[Glaucon]
No
question,
he
said.
[Socrates]
This
entire
allegory,
I
said,
you
may
now
append,
dear
Glaucon,
to
the
previous
argument;
the
prison-house
is
the
world
of
sight,
the
light
of
the
fire
is
the
sun,
and
you
will
not
misapprehend
me
if
you
interpret
the
journey
upwards
to
be
the
ascent
of
the
soul
into
the
intellectual
world
according
to
my
poor
belief,
which,
at
your
desire,
I
have
expressed
whether
rightly
or
wrongly
God
knows.
But,
whether
true
or
false,
my
opinion
is
that
in
the
world
of
knowledge
the
idea
of
good
appears
last
of
all,
and
is
seen
only
with
an
effort;
and,
when
seen,
is
also
inferred
to
be
the
universal
author
of
all
things
beautiful
and
right,
parent
of
light
and
of
the
lord
of
light
in
this
visible
world,
and
the
immediate
source
of
reason
and
truth
in
the
intellectual;
and
that
this
is
the
power
upon
which
he
who
would
act
rationally,
either
in
public
or
private
life
must
have
his
eye
fixed.
[Glaucon]
I
agree,
he
said,
as
far
as
I
am
able
to
understand
you.
[Socrates]
Moreover,
I
said,
you
must
not
wonder
that
those
who
attain
to
this
beatific
vision
are
unwilling
to
descend
to
human
affairs;
for
their
souls
are
ever
hastening
into
the
upper
world
where
they
desire
to
dwell;
which
desire
of
theirs
is
very
natural,
if
our
allegory
may
be
trusted.
[Glaucon]
Yes,
very
natural.
[Socrates]
And
is
there
anything
surprising
in
one
who
passes
from
divine
contemplations
to
the
evil
state
of
man,
misbehaving
himself
in
a
ridiculous
manner;
if,
while
his
eyes
are
blinking
and
before
he
has
become
accustomed
to
the
surrounding
darkness,
he
is
compelled
to
fight
in
courts
of
law,
or
in
other
places,
about
the
images
or
the
shadows
of
images
of
justice,
and
is
endeavoring
to
meet
the
conceptions
of
those
who
have
never
yet
seen
absolute
justice?
[Glaucon]
Anything
but
surprising,
he
replied.
[Socrates]
Any
one
who
has
common
sense
will
remember
that
the
bewilderments
of
the
eyes
are
of
two
kinds,
and
arise
from
two
causes,
either
from
coming
out
of
the
light
or
from
going
into
the
light,
which
is
true
of
the
mind's
eye,
quite
as
much
as
of
the
bodily
eye;
and
he
who
remembers
this
when
he
sees
any
one
whose
vision
is
perplexed
and
weak,
will
not
be
too
ready
to
laugh;
he
will
first
ask
whether
that
soul
of
man
has
come
out
of
the
brighter
light,
and
is
unable
to
see
because
unaccustomed
to
the
dark,
or
having
turned
from
darkness
to
the
day
is
dazzled
by
excess
of
light.
And
he
will
count
the
one
happy
in
his
condition
and
state
of
being,
and
he
will
pity
the
other;
or,
if
he
have
a
mind
to
laugh
at
the
soul
which
comes
from
below
into
the
light,
there
will
be
more
reason
in
this
than
in
the
laugh
which
greets
him
who
returns
from
above
out
of
the
light
into
the
cave.
[Glaucon]
That,
he
said,
is
a
very
just
distinction.
[Socrates]
But
then,
if
I
am
right,
certain
professors
of
education
must
be
wrong
when
they
say
that
they
can
put
a
knowledge
into
the
soul
which
was
not
there
before,
like
sight
into
blind
eyes.
[Glaucon]
They
undoubtedly
say
this,
he
replied.
[Socrates]
Whereas,
our
argument
shows
that
the
power
and
capacity
of
learning
exists
in
the
soul
already;
and
that
just
as
the
eye
was
unable
to
turn
from
darkness
to
light
without
the
whole
body,
so
too
the
instrument
of
knowledge
can
only
by
the
movement
of
the
whole
soul
be
turned
from
the
world
of
becoming
into
that
of
being,
and
learn
by
degrees
to
endure
the
sight
of
being,
and
of
the
brightest
and
best
of
being,
or
in
other
words,
of
the
good.
[Glaucon]
Very
true.
[Socrates]
And
must
there
not
be
some
art
which
will
effect
conversion
in
the
easiest
and
quickest
manner;
not
implanting
the
faculty
of
sight,
for
that
exists
already,
but
has
been
turned
in
the
wrong
direction,
and
is
looking
away
from
the
truth?
[Glaucon]
Yes,
he
said,
such
an
art
may
be
presumed.
[Socrates]
And
whereas
the
other
so-called
virtues
of
the
soul
seem
to
be
akin
to
bodily
qualities,
for
even
when
they
are
not
originally
innate
they
can
be
implanted
later
by
habit
and
exercise,
the
of
wisdom
more
than
anything
else
contains
a
divine
element
which
always
remains,
and
by
this
conversion
is
rendered
useful
and
profitable;
or,
on
the
other
hand,
hurtful
and
useless.
Did
you
never
observe
the
narrow
intelligence
flashing
from
the
keen
eye
of
a
clever
rogue
--how
eager
he
is,
how
clearly
his
paltry
soul
sees
the
way
to
his
end;
he
is
the
reverse
of
blind,
but
his
keen
eyesight
is
forced
into
the
service
of
evil,
and
he
is
mischievous
in
proportion
to
his
cleverness.
[Glaucon]
Very
true,
he
said.
[Socrates]
But
what
if
there
had
been
a
circumcision
of
such
natures
in
the
days
of
their
youth;
and
they
had
been
severed
from
those
sensual
pleasures,
such
as
eating
and
drinking,
which,
like
leaden
weights,
were
attached
to
them
at
their
birth,
and
which
drag
them
down
and
turn
the
vision
of
their
souls
upon
the
things
that
are
below
--if,
I
say,
they
had
been
released
from
these
impediments
and
turned
in
the
opposite
direction,
the
very
same
faculty
in
them
would
have
seen
the
truth
as
keenly
as
they
see
what
their
eyes
are
turned
to
now.
[Glaucon]
Very
likely.
[Socrates]
Yes,
I
said;
and
there
is
another
thing
which
is
likely.
or
rather
a
necessary
inference
from
what
has
preceded,
that
neither
the
uneducated
and
uninformed
of
the
truth,
nor
yet
those
who
never
make
an
end
of
their
education,
will
be
able
ministers
of
State;
not
the
former,
because
they
have
no
single
aim
of
duty
which
is
the
rule
of
all
their
actions,
private
as
well
as
public;
nor
the
latter,
because
they
will
not
act
at
all
except
upon
compulsion,
fancying
that
they
are
already
dwelling
apart
in
the
islands
of
the
blest.
[Glaucon]
Very
true,
he
replied.
[Socrates]
Then,
I
said,
the
business
of
us
who
are
the
founders
of
the
State
will
be
to
compel
the
best
minds
to
attain
that
knowledge
which
we
have
already
shown
to
be
the
greatest
of
all-they
must
continue
to
ascend
until
they
arrive
at
the
good;
but
when
they
have
ascended
and
seen
enough
we
must
not
allow
them
to
do
as
they
do
now.
[Glaucon]
What
do
you
mean?
[Socrates]
I
mean
that
they
remain
in
the
upper
world:
but
this
must
not
be
allowed;
they
must
be
made
to
descend
again
among
the
prisoners
in
the
cave,
and
partake
of
their
labors
and
honors,
whether
they
are
worth
having
or
not.
[Glaucon]
But
is
not
this
unjust?
he
said;
ought
we
to
give
them
a
worse
life,
when
they
might
have
a
better?
[Socrates]
You
have
again
forgotten,
my
friend,
I
said,
the
intention
of
the
legislator,
who
did
not
aim
at
making
any
one
class
in
the
State
happy
above
the
rest;
the
happiness
was
to
be
in
the
whole
State,
and
he
held
the
citizens
together
by
persuasion
and
necessity,
making
them
benefactors
of
the
State,
and
therefore
benefactors
of
one
another;
to
this
end
he
created
them,
not
to
please
themselves,
but
to
be
his
instruments
in
binding
up
the
State.
[Glaucon]
True,
he
said,
I
had
forgotten.
[Socrates]
Observe,
Glaucon,
that
there
will
be
no
injustice
in
compelling
our
philosophers
to
have
a
care
and
providence
of
others;
we
shall
explain
to
them
that
in
other
States,
men
of
their
class
are
not
obliged
to
share
in
the
toils
of
politics:
and
this
is
reasonable,
for
they
grow
up
at
their
own
sweet
will,
and
the
government
would
rather
not
have
them.
Being
self-taught,
they
cannot
be
expected
to
show
any
gratitude
for
a
culture
which
they
have
never
received.
But
we
have
brought
you
into
the
world
to
be
rulers
of
the
hive,
kings
of
yourselves
and
of
the
other
citizens,
and
have
educated
you
far
better
and
more
perfectly
than
they
have
been
educated,
and
you
are
better
able
to
share
in
the
double
duty.
Wherefore
each
of
you,
when
his
turn
comes,
must
go
down
to
the
general
underground
abode,
and
get
the
habit
of
seeing
in
the
dark.
When
you
have
acquired
the
habit,
you
will
see
ten
thousand
times
better
than
the
inhabitants
of
the
cave,
and
you
will
know
what
the
several
images
are,
and
what
they
represent,
because
you
have
seen
the
beautiful
and
just
and
good
in
their
truth.
And
thus
our
State
which
is
also
yours
will
be
a
reality,
and
not
a
dream
only,
and
will
be
administered
in
a
spirit
unlike
that
of
other
States,
in
which
men
fight
with
one
another
about
shadows
only
and
are
distracted
in
the
struggle
for
power,
which
in
their
eyes
is
a
great
good.
Whereas
the
truth
is
that
the
State
in
which
the
rulers
are
most
reluctant
to
govern
is
always
the
best
and
most
quietly
governed,
and
the
State
in
which
they
are
most
eager,
the
worst.
[Glaucon]
Quite
true,
he
replied.
[Socrates]
And
will
our
pupils,
when
they
hear
this,
refuse
to
take
their
turn
at
the
toils
of
State,
when
they
are
allowed
to
spend
the
greater
part
of
their
time
with
one
another
in
the
heavenly
light?
[Glaucon]
Impossible,
he
answered;
for
they
are
just
men,
and
the
commands
which
we
impose
upon
them
are
just;
there
can
be
no
doubt
that
every
one
of
them
will
take
office
as
a
stern
necessity,
and
not
after
the
fashion
of
our
present
rulers
of
State.
[Socrates]
Yes,
my
friend,
I
said;
and
there
lies
the
point.
You
must
contrive
for
your
future
rulers
another
and
a
better
life
than
that
of
a
ruler,
and
then
you
may
have
a
well-ordered
State;
for
only
in
the
State
which
offers
this,
will
they
rule
who
are
truly
rich,
not
in
silver
and
gold,
but
in
virtue
and
wisdom,
which
are
the
true
blessings
of
life.
Whereas
if
they
go
to
the
administration
of
public
affairs,
poor
and
hungering
after
the'
own
private
advantage,
thinking
that
hence
they
are
to
snatch
the
chief
good,
order
there
can
never
be;
for
they
will
be
fighting
about
office,
and
the
civil
and
domestic
broils
which
thus
arise
will
be
the
ruin
of
the
rulers
themselves
and
of
the
whole
State.
[Glaucon]
Most
true,
he
replied.
[Socrates]
And
the
only
life
which
looks
down
upon
the
life
of
political
ambition
is
that
of
true
philosophy.
Do
you
know
of
any
other?
[Glaucon]
Indeed,
I
do
not,
he
said.
[Socrates]
And
those
who
govern
ought
not
to
be
lovers
of
the
task?
For,
if
they
are,
there
will
be
rival
lovers,
and
they
will
fight.
[Glaucon]
No
question.
[Socrates]
Who
then
are
those
whom
we
shall
compel
to
be
guardians?
Surely
they
will
be
the
men
who
are
wisest
about
affairs
of
State,
and
by
whom
the
State
is
best
administered,
and
who
at
the
same
time
have
other
honors
and
another
and
a
better
life
than
that
of
politics?
[Glaucon]
They
are
the
men,
and
I
will
choose
them,
he
replied.
[Socrates]
And
now
shall
we
consider
in
what
way
such
guardians
will
be
produced,
and
how
they
are
to
be
brought
from
darkness
to
light,
--
as
some
are
said
to
have
ascended
from
the
world
below
to
the
gods?
[Glaucon]
By
all
means,
he
replied.
[Socrates]
The
process,
I
said,
is
not
the
turning
over
of
an
oyster-shell,
but
the
turning
round
of
a
soul
passing
from
a
day
which
is
little
better
than
night
to
the
true
day
of
being,
that
is,
the
ascent
from
below,
which
we
affirm
to
be
true
philosophy?
[Glaucon] Quite so.
************************************
Study Questions
Plato, “The Allegory of the Cave”
From The Republic of Plato, Book 7, 514a-521d