Plato lived around 427 – 347 BCE. He was a friend and a student of Socrates. Socrates is credited one of the greatest philosopher of all time and founder of western philosophy. Most of Socratic philosophy, dialogues, teaching and conversations have passed on and documented by Plato. Plato is best-known for his works including Phaedo, symposium, Phaedrus and Timeous. Allegory of the cave is from The Republic.
The primary purpose is Persuasive. He is trying to persuade the reader to question the reality they believe to be real and come out of the darkness they are used to living in. Plato is making the reader think about the false security and prison they have created for themselves. “Anyone 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” Plato is trying to tell the reader to understand the situation and walk in the other person’s shoes to understand why an individual acts or behaves a certain way before you judge them.
The Secondary Purpose is Expressive. Plato shows values when the prisoner goes back to the cave to try to convince the other what the reality is and …show more content…
Another strength is the depth of the philosophical questions the work raises, how the reality of life might be filtered through our own version of sanity and understanding. Another strength would be the way he explains how the prisoner would be put to death if he tries to change what the prisoners in the cave believe to be their reality, reflecting how people aren’t ready to hear anything that disproves their truth. Another Strength would be the way he puts all his arguments together, each one supporting one another, making it very difficult for the reader to not support