Plato The allegory of the cave
The most famous passage in all Platos writings occurs in the Republic, this is the analogy of the cave. This analogy is where Plato puts into symbolic form his view of the human condition and human knowledge, in relation to reality as a whole. Plato asks us to imagine a situation; there are ‘prisoners’ forced to face a wall trapped with their backs to the entrance of a big cave connected to the outside world by a long passage, long enough so that no daylight enters. ... Behind the prisoners, outside of the cave is a large fire; unbeknown to them between them and the fire are people walking to and fro carrying objects on their heads. ... Plato goes on to explain; the only things these people ever perceive or experience in their entire lives are these shadows and echoes. ... Preceding this Plato describes a time if one prisoner could break his shackles and free himself from the cave. ... If the prisoner were then dragged out of the cave the man would be dazzled and bewildered, and it would be a very long time before he was able to comprehend, see or understand anything.