Overview
Philosophy Questions:
I have long argued that not every student comes to a class to learn. This is because education is usually a difficult (painful) process that requires a student to take full, personal responsibility to move from darkness (ignorance) to light (enlightenment).
So, instead, many students take a class only to earn a grade (preferably an "A") and will blame the professor, their circumstance, or everyone else for their failure.
The movement from darkness to light is addressed in Plato's "Allegory of the Cave." Your assignment is to draw from your readings, watch this brief video, and respond to all the following questions:
- Discuss the meaning and moral lesson of Plato’s Allegory of the Cave” and relate in the real world as to why is it difficult to convince some people that what they think they know is caused not by their free will but by mere trickery (or illusion) caused by others? Give real world examples.
- What have you learned in this course that would support the notion that human beings are sometimes manipulated by "puppet masters" (artists, architects, musicians, writers, poets, movie makers, politicians, philosophers, religious leaders, etc.)? Address different logical fallacies and how this relates as to how human beings sometimes become manipulated.
- How much have you learned about yourself and especially what could be happening to your ability to think critically?
Please use video and pdf file for reference