| Instructor: Dr. Jeff Webb |
Paper One Assignment: Close Reading of Plato's Republic
In Search for the Truth about Truth
By Liang Shu-Ping
Be it ancient philosophers or today's Hollywood movies, there is the common
belief that what we experience as reality is just a mere illusion of the truth.
Plato's allegory of the cave in "The Republic" describes human beings as being
chained in a cave, such that they cannot move but are forced to face a wall,
onto which shadows of puppets and themselves are projected. They are deceived
into believing that their reality is composed of these "shadows" when actually,
the world of truth is the "light" outside the cave. This analogy insinuates
the probability that we have been entertaining "false notions" about life, and
all our beliefs, ranging from religion to the sciences, are merely representations
of the truth. What is this "light" that burns so bright in Plato's eyes? Are
we certain that it exists? Because for all we know, life might be nothing but
the cave itself.
Plato appears certain of what the "light" beyond the cave will reveal to the
one who has made the journey out. Firstly it will provide a means of illumination
that will expose the "real existence" of the world. In the brightness of the
"light", everything would be seen in their full beauty instead of the vague
impressions shadows create. He would receive accurate information about life
and therefore dispense with the need to discern between the truth and the lie.
Furthermore, he would also see himself in his own "proper place". He would no
longer be confused about his identity, role in society or purpose in life, and
could then carry out his duties confidently and effectively. Secondly the "light"
itself also symbolizes the "idea of good". Since it is mentioned in the allegory
that if one were to act "rationally", he would need to rely on the "idea of
good". It can be interpreted that "the idea of good" would equip one with the
necessary virtues, qualities, skills and knowledge required to act in a responsible
and reasonable manner. This would encompass "all things beautiful and right"
and the "source of reason and truth". The former most probably refers to virtues
like piety and compassion, while the latter includes wisdom and the ability
to think logically (both of which are prerequisites for making informed decisions).
In fact, Plato has so much faith in the power of the truth that he believes
only those who have "arrived at the good" will have the necessary qualities
to be "able ministers of State".
A subtle disclaimer in the allegory indicated that Socrates' interpretations
of life are only his "opinions" based on his "poor beliefs". Although we cannot
be certain whether Plato was playing it safe or had the intention to make Socrates
come across as humble, we can infer that Socrates himself has not seen the "light".
Instead of being derived from personal experience, he arrived at his description
of truth on the basis of intuition and personal beliefs. Moreover Plato also
fails to mention his reasons or evidence for believing that life is a deception.
He does not give any real life examples of instances when we have been deceived
and therefore the allegory fails to convince the reader completely that his
perceived reality consists merely of "shadows". Conversely in the "Meditations",
Descartes attempted to doubt everything because he had often accepted "false
opinions as true". He proposed three causes of deception: perceptual illusion,
the possibility that life is dream and a God who might be deceiving us. Descartes
believed that there had to be truths in life which were "certain and indubitable".
The difference between the two philosophers is that Plato is seeking a whole
new world of truths whereas Descartes simply aims to sieve out indubitable truths
from the mass of information we receive from life. In this case of the allegory,
Plato is working on a whole plane of uncertainty as he is neither able to determine
the existence of a different reality nor disprove the credibility of our lives.
The world as we know it is indeed imperfect but imperfection should not qualify
it as being false.
Should we stop all things and embark on the intellectual ascent to the truth?
Philosophically, yes. For according to Plato it would be better to "endure anything,
rather than think as they do and live after their manner". However it is questionable
if the need for knowledge of the truth (which might not even exist) is great
enough to justify a journey in search for it. This is a decision we have to
make for ourselves.
Works Cited
Plato. Republic. Trans. Benjamin Jowett. 8 Jan. 2001.
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