philo

Socrates suggests that if the prisoners are released, they would look around and see the fire, which
would hurt their eyes and make it difficult to see the objects casting shadows. In his pain, they
would turn away and run back to what they are accustomed to, the shadows of the carried objects.
Francine
● In this way, Socrates claims that people who have been imprisoned and tortured may be more
inclined to try to escape from their current situation than when they were not being tortured
or imprisoned.

Socrates suggests that someone should drag a prisoner up a steep incline and never stop until they
reach the light of the sun. This would cause the prisoner to be angry and in pain, which would only
worsen when the sun's radiant light blinded them. Francine
● The prisoner would be blinded by this light, which would only cause them more pain and
anger. They would also be unable to see their way back down again because they are unable
to take in any more information about their surroundings due to being blindfolded.