What is the significance of Plato’s Cave? (2)

What is the significance of Plato’s Cave? (2)To explain different interpretations of the CaveTo begin to think about how we could criticise these ideas.

Who would be the best leader?

Complete the card sort

In pairs, complete the card sort sheet 1.2 and then annotate your Plato’s cave cartoon strip with the different meanings.

Let’s go into some more detail

• Read and highlight the allegorical features of the ‘What does it all mean?’ information sheet. Then annotate your storyboard.

A priori vs A posteriori knowledgePlato showed in the Allegory of the Cave that our senses deceive us and that empirical (a posteriori) knowledge is flawed. When he emerged into the real world outside the cave, his power of reasoning leads him to a philosophical understanding of the truth. This is a priori knowledge. A priori truths include ideas of maths and geometry and all things that are true by definition (analytic statements) - all spinsters are female, all vixen are foxes. If you have to verify a statement empirically (using your senses, then it is a synthetic statement) – spinsters are miserable.

Activity: on the following slide there are a series of statements – work out if you know them a posteriori, or a priori.Before we move on, make sure you have a definition of the key terms!

A priori vs a posterioria) Everyone wants what is good.b) The square root of 81 is 9.c) All bachelors are unmarried men.d) Some bachelors have penthouses and throw wild

parties.e) All things eventually decay and die.f) God exists.g) Material objects occupy space.h) Two parallel lines will ever meet.i) Nothing can come from nothing.

Make a table outlining the strengths and weaknesses of the analogy

How can you criticise Plato’s thinking? Make a table outlining the strengths and weaknesses of the analogy.

Key points: How can we know the truth? How should society be organised? Who is the best leader?

Independent LearningThe Glossary needs to be completed.Other than that - you have loads to do. Make sure that you have completed your Independent Learning Log by Thursday’s lesson.

Tomorrow’s lesson will look at essay writing and then on Thursday we will be looking at Plato’s forms. Please make sure that you have read and made notes on the small textbook 14 – 17.

Plenary Pyramid

What is the significance of Plato’s Cave? (2)To explain different interpretations of the CaveDecide whether Plato is successful