The simile invites us to envision the
world as a dark cave, with humans inside, trapped like prisoners. All we know
are the shadows on a wall in front of us, and the mumblings from the shadows. And
once you escape the cave, it is only you that understands a further experience,
others may be swayed, but many will be satisfied with that of the cave.
Plato's Cave is meant to urge
everyone to stop settling for an unexplored life. Since Plato believed that
human beings could eventually free themselves and head upwards to the real
world, the simile's bleakness is really meant to be a somewhat motivational
wake-up call, to make people understand how limiting and self-defeating an
"unexamined life" can be. It's also meant to remind people that they
should be aware of everything. By being a skeptical person, you are able to take
everything you encounter in life as an opportunity for scrutiny and self-improvement.
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