False Advertising and Plato

Allegory of the Cave The beginning of Plato's book VII of the "The Republic" (514a -- 520a) is a written dialogue between Glaucon, Plato's brother, and his mentor, Socrates - The Allegory of the Cave. Plato's 'Allegory of the Cave' presents a world whereby prisoners lived chained to the wall of the cave. The people carrying puppets or objects, the puppeteers, create shadows of the objects on the wall, and for the prisoners, these shadows are real. The shadows create reality for them.

Plato then supposes that if one prisoner was set free and departed from the cave, he will find it difficult to see because of the sun and will be anxious about what he sees around him. The prisoner's version of reality had always been the shadows on the wall. According to Aquileana (2016), after acquainting himself to his new world, he subsequently recognizes that his entire presence has been contained and manipulated by others and the truth is now apparent to him.

The Prisoners in the Cave Rader describes that the prisoners in the 'Allegory of the Cave' are not able to see the objects or "puppets," the real objects that were being carried behind them. The discussion echoes off the wall, and shadows created by puppeteers, the objects not seen by the prisoners, are what prisoners hear and see. Prisoners, as such, mistake the presence for reality. Since the prisoners have not seen the carried objects before, they accept the shadows of the puppets as the true and real objects.

Plato proposes that prisoners would later on embark on a guessing "game" to determine the shadow that will come next. If one of the prisoners was to guess the next appearing shadow correctly, the other prisoners would honor him as the cleverest among them. Suppose one of them escapes and leaves the cave, he would be shocked by the world he sees outside, not to believe it is real. As the prisoner becomes accustomed to his new world, he recognizes that his prior perception of reality was incorrect.

He then begins to comprehend and appreciate this real world. At first, he was only seeing shadows of artificial things. Then, he is able to see reflections of objects and people on the water, and later objects and people themselves. After a while, he is able to see the moon and stars at night and then the sun itself. Lastly, he is able to look at the sun, the main spring of knowledge.

When a returning prisoner goes back to the cave, his former dwelling, and tells the other prisoners what he saw, they do not believe him. According to Rader (2016), they would kill him if he attempted to drag them out. The Allegory of the Cave and Popular Imagery According to Plato, there are two perceptions: the sense perception is the domain of appearance, the exterior perceived with bodily senses. It is, in Plato's view, the world inside the cave with shadows. It is an illusionary world.

What is true and real is impossible to distinguish using human senses. It is only achievable by perceiving it spiritually through divine enlightenment. Casting off sensory perception is the only way to perceive beyond the exterior. Therefore, spiritual perception is only possible if people are able to free their selves from the material things that bind them. It is Plato's ideal philosophy. Spiritual perception is an ideal thought.

Plato then utilizes his work to illustrate Hegemony, which is explained as the imposition of thoughts and structures of authority in which the prevailing members of the society continue to have control. According to Godowsky (2016), education is an avenue to free one's self from these orders of control. Haymond explains that the 'Allegory of the Cave' can be rationalized by means of current prevalent imagery, for instance, media and the modern-day pop culture. The media can be likened to the shadows casted on the wall.

To illustrate, media gives false advertising shown on television, magazines and billboards. Many people promptly believe whatever they see. If a person further investigates, he or she might conclude that what they saw in the media was merely "advertising," and a false one: a lie. Advertisements are done in such a way that they entice consumers, leading them to purchase a specific product or service. Companies hire entertainment personalities, use false advertising and dazzling generalities, and many other schemes to persuade people into purchasing their merchandise.

It is their way to make people think that what they are offering is good and remarkable. This is how they generate revenue, through lies. Although there are people already aware of this, some remain oblivious. There will always be people who are aware of this scheme, and those who will just sit back, give in to the advertisements, and make purchases. The latter can be likened to prisoners in the cave who just watched the shadows. Those who.