"The Allegory of the Cave" (3/16)

To Do: 

Pre-writing Activities for "The Allegory of the Cave"

Please answer the questions below in a piece of paper. Be prepared to share your ideas with the class.

1. The piece we are about to read and discuss, “The Allegory of the Cave,” is an important example of Ancient Greek philosophy. In Greek, “philosophy” literally means “love of wisdom.” But what is wisdom? What do you think?
2. Why do you think people study philosophy?
3. An allegory is a story with two meanings, a literal meaning and a symbolic meaning, where the symbolic meaning serves as a mirror of the real problem or question. This allegory is about a cave. What do you know about caves? What could a cave represent? What could the phrase “to be in a cave” mean? What could the phrase “come out of the cave” mean?

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I. ANNOTATING “THE ALLEGORY OF THE CAVE”

Socrates, from Wikipedia

Context for the reading: The author of “The Allegory of the Cave,” Plato, lived in Athens about 2,400 years ago. He was the student of another outstanding Athenian philosopher, Socrates. In “The Allegory of the Cave,” Socrates is speaking, and it is he who invents an allegory to help one of his students, Glaucon, understand a complex philosophical idea.

The reading is on page  of the class packet. We will read the piece out loud, stopping to make clarifications, answer questions, and stress important ideas.

Then you will read the piece again and use the “Annotating” handout (page 1) to mark the reading to your satisfaction. Please consult your dictionaries for any words you do not understand.


II. SUMMARIZING THE STORY

In groups of three: Put the ideas below in order so they summarize Socrates’ literal storytelling. You will be asked to share your answer with the class.

Scrambled Summary of "The Allegory of the Cave"


III. CRITICAL THINKING

Working in groups, choose five elements of the story (the chains, for example) that could represent other things. Write them down on a piece of paper and explain what they represent to your group and why. You will be asked to share your interpretations with the class.


IV. BLOG 5: SUMMARIZING WHAT THE ALLEGORY STANDS FOR

In your blog, write 2-3 paragraphs that summarize the symbolic meaning of Socrates’ story—what is he actually trying to say? Follow this introduction:

In Plato’s “The Allegory of the Cave,” Socrates tells a story to his student Glaucon to explain ...