Brianna Vreeland Sept. 14, 2012
English 101 Mr. Platt

Revelation of the Soul

We live in a society where we are told what to eat, drink, think, etc. Living in such a ritualized lifestyle can often leave us blind. However, we don't even realize it. The "Allegory of the Cave," by Plato, is more than just a story; it's a tool that can be applied to our life in almost any situation. For instance, looking into this story, I realize how much it is related and connected to religion. It is so easy to just do what everyone else is doing just to feel accepted. Which was me, a conformist, trying to fit in. Plato's story not only opened up my outlook on life, but was an interpretation of my allegory of the cave–being saved spiritually. I did everything and anything just to fit in with everybody else. When he or she is a child, they usually practice the same religion as their family, because it's the only way one knows. When I was younger, my parents enrolled me in a private school, Goshen Christian. I didn't know what the importance of religion was when I went there. I was just going because my parents told me to. Which relates to the cave in a way, for instance, Plato says, " human beings living in an underground den, which has a mouth open towards the light…; here they have been from their childhood, and their legs and necks chained so they can not move…" (Plato 449). This relates because even from my early childhood I felt as if I was chained and held back from making my own decisions.For example I always wished to be a "normal kid" going to public school. However, leaving the fourth grade, something happened that changed me. My parents decided to put me into a public school, Round Hill Elementary. In a way, I was ecstatic, because I would make friends that lived close by me and I would be just like everyone else, but in another way I was afraid of change. I entered the fifth grade being an outsider. In all honesty, I was the "weirdo" of the school. To clarify, I didn't know what was cool and what was not, and people realized it in a heartbeat. People would stare at me as if I was from Mars–I dressed like it. So I did everything I could to make friends. I would partake in everything they were doing; wore make-up, dressed in the newest clothes and talked just like them. As I started to become closer friends with them, I started to lose a sense of my religion. I pushed it on the back burner, because being accepted was the most important thing in my life at that time.God was no longer my main priority, keeping friends became my ultimate goal. And, as I grew older, I never cared to bring it back to the front burner. From 5th grade to ninth grade, we were all best friends. Manipulating my mind, I started to think their way was the best way. Plato describes this situation, " And they see only their own shadows, or the shadows of one another.." (450). I only saw myself and my friends. Nothing else mattered to me. We were "cool", poked fun at the underdogs, went to all the parties, and gossiped. We would deliberately go out of our way and make fun of people just to make ourselves feel better. For instance, we used to laugh at this one girl because of the way she wore her hair and used to talk. When I look at it, we were all sinners and prisoners in a way, in the dark not knowing right from wrong. The end of the ninth grade was life changing for me, and I didn't even see it coming. I went to church one morning with my family, which was rare for me. In fact, it felt like the first day of fifth grade all over again. However, a group of kids around my age and a little older began to talk to me. There was something different about them. They were all genuinely happy and nice for no reason, so I sat with them. As the pastor was preaching his sermon, I felt as if I could hear a voice inside my head telling me, "This is right". I didn't have to be mean to feel accepted; I felt accepted and I didn't even have to try. I couldn't comprehend what it was, but I liked that feeling. It was that moment when I realized that guilt and shame of being a mean and selfish person hovered almost every action I did in the past. The acceptance that I longed for in the beginning didn't feel as good as the acceptance I found in about a day. "…the power and capacity of learning exists in the soul already; and just as the eye was able to turn from darkness to light without the whole body…and learn by degrees to endure the sight of being…or in other words, of the good"(454) describes the exact feeling I felt when I left church that morning. Good was in me all along–I just had to seek it. A sense of pure bright acceptance overwhelmed me, and there was no way I was going to return to the cave for good. However, just like in Plato's story, it is very difficult to show the light to the prisoners as well. My friends soon became no longer my friends; they didn't want to change their ways. They were comfortable with only caring about themselves, and not caring if they were mean to people. Plato's "Allegory of the Cave" is a complex and intricate story that interprets many experiences in life. We all have been chained down by some difficulty that gets in our way. It's just that action of realizing it makes it seem hard. Especially if people are comfortable where they are, and who they are. I believe Plato's message is anyone is capable of change, but in order to change one must want it. Which is why I believe my story is a revelation, because I saw the light. With hard work, and an open mind and heart, I realized that it took a deviation to bring forth an innovation.

Work Cited
Plato. "The Allegory of the Cave". Trans. Benjamin Jowett. A World of Ideas. Ed. Lee A. Jacobus. 8th ed. Boston: Bedford/St. Martins, 2010.(449-457). Print.