The cave metaphor was one of the first things in The Republic that has really made sense to me. Beside the fact that they probably couldn't breathe very well in the cave, and the question of how they got there, it is a good metaphor. When I read it, I immediately thought about the tragedies and suffering into truth. Also, it reminds me of stepping out of a comfort zone. Intially, the change is painful and uncomfortable, but after some time, you begin to see what you have been missing out on. Too many people live their lives stuck in their own personal "cave" and never see what could have been. If they would only break free from their comfort zone, they would see what life is really about.
I commented on Lane's
but what if stepping out of your metaphorical cave was disasterous for your beliefs, like the enlightenment of his situation with Oedipus?
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