Plato's Oppression Of The Soul

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What is it that makes an individual do what he does every day? What makes a person live the way they do? One may say that it is because of the one’s home, wealth, appearance, and so on, however, these are physical things that, even though may contributed, are not truly what makes a person who they are. What people believe is what makes them who they are and it is the way people view the world that influences everything that they do in life. This is called a person’s worldview. Plato, a philosopher from Athens, had a great impact on people’s view of the world and became credited with being the founder of western philosophy. Many of the Greeks accused Plato of corrupting the minds of others through his teachings. Eventually Plato was forced …show more content…
This separation frees the soul from the body which Plato calls purification (Phaedo 67 c). With this separation the soul is now able to access ultimate reality. With the attachment to the fleshy body, the soul has been trapped and unable to fully understand truth. With this belief, Plato views death as something that is necessary and longed for, as life is just preparation for death. This view directly effects how Plato must live his life and therefore is a fundamental part of his worldview. Once the soul is free it is able to access ultimate reality, which is the last part that is fundamental to Plato’s …show more content…
In book VII starting at 514a he tells of a world in which several people are imprisoned in a cave. In this cave there is light produced by fire which enables shadows to be projected in front of the captured individuals. Because these people have only seen shadows they believe they are real. One individual escapes the cave and is exposed to the real world. What is first hard to understand true things are now able to be perceived by this individual. What this person sees is able to be seen because of the sun. Through the sun all is able to be understood. This allegory is what Plato uses to explain ultimate reality. He claims that everyone who is not a philosopher is like to individuals in the cave. They cannot see the truth. The philosophers are the individuals who are able to escape the cave and see truth. Due to this Plato believes philosophers are superior to regular men. “Until philosophers rule as kings in their cities…cities will have no rest from evils…nor…will the human race” (Republic V). Here Plato clearly states that philosophers must rule due to their superiority in knowing truth. Therefore, his life must be lived in a just and wise way in order to gain more knowledge and rule those who are unable to understand

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