<span> “The Allegory of the Cave” is an extended metaphor describing the plight of one forced to live out his life chained in a cave. All he knows of the universe are those shadows that happen to pass over and those echoes that reverberate off the cave wall. Hypothetically, he is freed and allowed to glimpse the fire behind him that enables the shadows to be cast. The light of the fire hurts him and the sight of objects that play owner to his familiar shadows confuses him. He runs from the light. He is then forced outside the cave, forced to witness the sun. Angry at his exile from the cave and fairly blinded by the power of the sun, the man is slow to adjust. Given time, he is able to look upon shadows, reflections, physical objects, and finally, the sun itself. Having seen the light, returning to the cave seems a decent into darkness. The prisoners he returns to conclude that his expedition outside has left him blind. Their resolve hardens even more thoroughly against a similar fate befalling them.</span>
