Plato's Cave

The spatial organization of Plato’s cave allows us to map out our conceptual visual thinking, and how we think of cinema. 

  

From Great Dialogues of Plato: Complete Texts of the Republic, Apology, Crito Phaido, Ion, and Meno, Vol. 1. (Warmington and Rouse, eds.) New York, Signet Classics: 1999. p. 316.

Links to an external site.The prisoners of the cave sit on the ground. The prisoners are held in the cave for their entire lives and know nothing except what is presented in front of them. They view "shadows" presented on the cave wall. These shadows are a copy of a real thing, from the artist. 

In the middle of the cave, there’s a roadway where the “artists” manipulate the shadows that the prisoners see through puppets. They create illusions that stir emotions in false directions. Finally, In the back of the cave, there is the fire that illuminates the cave with light.

How do the various elements of the allegory (the prisoners, the fire, etc.) apply to our conceptual experience of cinema? 

On the next page, you'll play an optional matching game to label these parallels between the Allegory and our experience of cinema.

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