Discussion Starter: The Republic

            In Book VII, Plato presents the famous allegory of the Cave, where a prisoner in a dark cave is removed from his peers and is brought aboveground to see the sun and everything illuminated by the sun’s light. In this image, the character Socrates makes an important statement about the education. He believes the forms, represented in the allegory as the sun, to be the true reality, the perfect versions of societal concepts and material objects. The philosopher king is fit to rule because his education allows him understanding of the truth, and will strive to create a city that most closely imitates the forms for a harmonious and productive society. Thus, enlightened leadership is most able to construct Plato’s ideal society.

Even within the allegory, however, Plato begins to suggest the issues with such disparity in education and treatment. For one thing, once the enlightened returns to his peers in the dark cave, his eyes take a while to recover, “and the adjustment would not be quick,” and this lag time invites ridicule. Additionally, the prisoners, who may be jealous of what he has learned or believe that the philosopher believes himself better than them, would kill him “if they could somehow get their hands on him” (517a). The gap in their knowledge of the truth creates tense class relations, whereas in the ideal society everyone is comfortable in their respective societal roles. This resentment is not described as one-way in the allegory. The philosopher himself would rather “‘work the earth as a serf to another, one without possessions,’ and go through any sufferings, rather than share their opinions and live as they do” (516d). The tone of this idea may be condescending, where the philosopher actively thinks of his state of mind as better than the lowly “opinions” of the rest. This statement also presents the most important point of this allegory, that an individuals intellect and level of enlightenment is what determines his distinction and social class, not wealth.  

In considering the question of which differences between people justify treating them differently in society, can and should education be considered a justifiable inequality? When thinking the answer, also consider whether such inequality helps or hurts the building of Plato’s ideal society. Do certain individuals reserve the right to enlightenment, while others should be content living in the dark? In other words, is this type of education a right or a privilege, and if it is a privilege, who determines and how do you determine who is fit to become a philosopher king?  Beyond this hypothetical, is it realistic to believe that people are truly “chained” to the images they believe to be a reality? In might be helpful to think about these questions in the context of the modern day: do we see education as the cause of socioeconomic inequality?