"The Cave"

1. This allegory is about wisdom. Socrates is trying to explain to Glaucon that wisdom is not something that many possess or understand. Many of us are "in the dark", or ignorant of what is really happening all around us. However, we are accustomed to living this way and think nothing of it, much like the prisoners in the cave. If we should somehow see a glimpse of wisdom and understand it, we would most likely think of it as a terrible thing. But the more one understands wisdom, the more one comes to see that it is crucial to living a healthy life and is a most beneficial characteristic to possess. Although the truth can be ugly, it is the truth; and living in the truth, however negative it may seem at times, is far better than living an ignorant life.

2. He's trying to say that truth is not easily accepted at first, but once one realizes its importance and the extent of it all, they simply cannot get enough. Unfortunately, this realization often happens later in life.

3. The "dark stage" in the cave can be perceived as young children, not enrolled in school yet. What they understand seems to be everything there is in life and they desire no more. Once they begin to learn, naturally their brain does not take it lightly. But as their education continues and intensifies, their eyes are opened up and they see what all is out there for their minds to capture, and they learn, gaining wisdom and understanding.

4. It could connect to technology today with the elderly, or adults who don't want to understand new electronical devices. They don't know what is out there and so they ignore the newest developments in technology. If they try to learn, it is so difficult that the majority of them quit. But those who keep up with it find that only the beginning is rough, and after that, they cannot get enough of the new technology out there and yearn to learn more and more.