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Is Plato's Allegory Still Relevant Today

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The Allegory of the Cave is a brilliant writing by Plato that really puts into perspective how we are living as a part of a materialistic and consumer society. The darn thing was written almost 2,500 years ago, and considering the fact that the allegory is still relevant today, Plato’s allegory is surprisingly very close to what contemporary society is like. His arguments are undoubtedly strong since he patches all his arguments well to lower any possibilities of counter arguments, but there is still room for doubt. Also, even with those weaknesses, the prisoners in the allegory are still indisputably similar to the people of today, and the cave doubtlessly like the modern society. In this essay, I will discuss some of Plato’s strength and weaknesses in his arguments as well as how the allegory still applies to the current people and society. …show more content…

One of the piece’s greatest strength is its lack of room for criticism and finds a way to give an explanation for everything in a way that the average person can understand. Even with its weaknesses of being overly simplified for today’s society, is still very relevant when it comes down to how people are and what the world is like in its most basic form. Since it was written so long ago, life back then was much simpler than life is now. Even then, the things in the allegory can still be compared to present-day life. People nowadays are ignorant towards seeking more than just what we are force-fed by the government and media much like the prisoners in the allegory, and do become defensive or even hostile when their ideas are challenged. The cave, the chains, and the shadows all represent something that controls modern people like it controlled the prisoners in the cave. So, the world has not changed much from the written allegory 2400 years ago. The only things that have changed are the size of the cave, the time, and the grip of the

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