Plato's Allegory of the Cave and Advertisements
Julian Figueroa (#30973127)
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An Allegory of Advertisements
How does Plato’s allegory influence the way we consume art today?
Every minute of every day, millions of people are exposed to advertisements. They plague televisions, streets, radio waves, and all means of communication. These advertisements employ many methods of persuasion and their influence is irresistible. Just like prisoners in Plato’s Allegory of the Cave, we are told every day to invest our time and interest into the subject of these advertisements, and to accept the forms of reality they serve us. Whether it be a commercial for a must-have new car, to a spot featuring desirable fast food, or to magazines with photoshopped models; we are seduced to accept these false forms of reality. In actuality, the car is hardly distinguishable from models in the years past, the food is not near as glossy and fresh as the commercial depicts, and the bodies of models have unfeasible proportions. Like the prisoners in the cave, we still accept these forms to be reality, even though they are imitations and falsities of their actual subjects. Puppeteers, like prisoners, are still within the boundaries of the cave, and some believe in their imitations whilst others know the falsehood they are presenting; just like advertisers of today. Even philosopher-kings must be part of the cave in certain ways, as they contribute their own forms of imitation to the prisoners, akin to puppeteers. The Allegory of the Cave has an abundance of meaning to our generation and future generations to come, as the themes and elements it contains relate directly to our society’s consumption and production of promotional media.
In Plato’s allegory, several metaphors are summoned to illustrate the effect of education on the soul. The allegory starts with the description of a cave; a place containing prisoners, shadows, puppeteers and fire. The prisoners are bound to look at the shadows, cast upon the wall by the fire and the objects
1
An Allegory of Advertisements
How does Plato’s allegory influence the way we consume art today?
Every minute of every day, millions of people are exposed to advertisements. They plague televisions, streets, radio waves, and all means of communication. These advertisements employ many methods of persuasion and their influence is irresistible. Just like prisoners in Plato’s Allegory of the Cave, we are told every day to invest our time and interest into the subject of these advertisements, and to accept the forms of reality they serve us. Whether it be a commercial for a must-have new car, to a spot featuring desirable fast food, or to magazines with photoshopped models; we are seduced to accept these false forms of reality. In actuality, the car is hardly distinguishable from models in the years past, the food is not near as glossy and fresh as the commercial depicts, and the bodies of models have unfeasible proportions. Like the prisoners in the cave, we still accept these forms to be reality, even though they are imitations and falsities of their actual subjects. Puppeteers, like prisoners, are still within the boundaries of the cave, and some believe in their imitations whilst others know the falsehood they are presenting; just like advertisers of today. Even philosopher-kings must be part of the cave in certain ways, as they contribute their own forms of imitation to the prisoners, akin to puppeteers. The Allegory of the Cave has an abundance of meaning to our generation and future generations to come, as the themes and elements it contains relate directly to our society’s consumption and production of promotional media.
In Plato’s allegory, several metaphors are summoned to illustrate the effect of education on the soul. The allegory starts with the description of a cave; a place containing prisoners, shadows, puppeteers and fire. The prisoners are bound to look at the shadows, cast upon the wall by the fire and the objects