Timaeus — Plato

upper world. And first he will see the shadows best, next the reflections of men and other objects in the water, and then the objects themselves ; then he will gaze upon the light of the moon and the stars and the spangled heaven ; and he will see the sky and the stars by night better than the sun or the light of the sun by day? Certainly. Last of all he will be able to see the sun, and not mere reflections of him in the water, but he will see him in his own proper place, and not in another ; and he will contemplate him as he is. Certainly. He will then proceed to argue that this is he who gives the season and the years, and is the guardian of all that is in the visible world, and in a certain way the cause of all things which he and his fellows have been accustomed to behold? Clearly, he said, he would first see the sun and then reason about him. And when he remembered his old habitation, and the wisdom of the den and his fellow-prisoners, do you not suppose that he would fehcitate himself on the change, and pity them? Certainly, he would. And if they were in the habit of conferring honours among themselves on those who were quickest to observe the passing shadows and to remark which of them went before, and which followed after, and which were together ; and who were therefore best able to draw conclusions as to the future, do you think that he would care for such honours and glories, or envy the possessors of them? Would he not say with Homer, ' Better to be the poor servant of a poor master,'

and to endure anything, rather than think as they do and hve after their manner? Yes, he said, I think that he would rather suffer anything than entertain these false notions and live in this miserable manner. Imagine once more, I said, such an one coming suddenly

TJie interpretation of t/ie parable. 2 i 7 out of the sun to be replaced in his old situation ; would he Republic \'ii. not be certain to have his eyes full of darkness? Socrates, To be sure, he said. ^'^^"°^- And if there were a contest, and he had to compete in ^"'^^^^ ^ they returned measuring the shadows with the prisoners who had never to the den c 1 7 moved out of the den, while his sight was still weak, and '^^^ ^'""^^ J I 7 o 7 see much before his eyes had become steady (and the time which worse than . would be needed to acquire this new habit of sight might be 1^"^^=^^° ^ 00 had never very considerable), would he not be ridiculous? Men would left it. say of him that up he went and down he came without his eyes ; and that it was better not even to think of ascending ; and if any one tried to loose another and lead him up to the Hght, let them only catch the offender, and they would put him to death. No question, he said. This entire allegory, I said, you may now append, dear The prison is the world

Glaucon, to the previous argument ; the prison-house is the ^^. world of sight, the Hght of the fire is the sun, and you will light of the not misapprehend me if you interpret the journey upwards ^^^^^ ^^""' to be the ascent of the soul into the intellectual world according to my poor bdief, which, at your desire, I have expressed — whether rightly or wrongly God knows. But, whether true or false, my opinion is that yn the world of knowledge the idea of good appears last of all, and is seen only with ah effort ; and, when seen, is also inferred to be the universal author^ of all things beautiful and right, parent of light and of the lord of light in this visible world, and the •. immediate source of reason and truth in the intellectual ; \ and that this is the power upon which he who would act rationally either in public or private life must have his eye fixed. I agree, he said, as far as I am able to understand you. Moreover, I said, you must not wonder that those who attain to this beatific vision are unwilling to descend to human affairs ; for their souls are ever hastening into the upper world where they desire to dwell ; which desire of theirs is very natural, if our allegory may be trusted. Yes, very natural. And is there anything surprising in one who passes from divine contemplations to the evil state of man, misbehaving

2l8

'The light of the body is the eye'

Republic VII. Socrates, CIlaucon. Nothing extraordinary in the philosopher being unable to see in the dark. The eyes may be blinded in two ways, by excess or by defect of light.

The conversion of the soul is the turning round the eye from darkness to light.