Abstract
Human mind was always a mystery to humanity. Many thinkers and philosophers tried to solve its puzzles. Plato and Descartes are the philosophers who offer a comprehensive and well-known accounts of human mind and learning process. While both of them value the mind and wisdom the most, Plato considers contact with another very helpful in the process of learning while Descartes does not share his position. Plato's position is explained through his description of the ascent to light in the allegory of the cave while Descartes view is shown from his conclusions about mind and body from the Second Meditation. The objection states that Plato considered contact with other a hindrance for learning. It is supported by the explanation of the prisoner descent into the cave and refuted by showing that the opposition of the prisoners is not an obstacle to learning.
Human mind has always been a mystery to humanity. Throughout history, countless people tried to find its secrets. The ancient civilizations, magicians and prophets, thinkers and philosophers, and now the scientists try to get to its hidden places. One of the most important questions is where should humans aim in their progress – should they learn to earn more money, get more power, or get more knowledge? And also, what is the best way to do it – with the help of others or without it? The great ancient philosopher Plato and 17th century most known thinker Rene Descartes have their answers to these questions. In this paper, I will argue that while both Descartes and Plato value mind, wisdom, and philosophy the most, Plato thinks that the contact with others is beneficial if not necessary for learning, and Descartes considers the mind self-sufficient and does not support Plato's view. I will support my position by offering close explanations of the learning process presented by Plato in the allegory of the cave and by Descartes in his Meditations. It can be objected that Plato does not consider the contact beneficiary to learning. But I will prove that this point of view is weak which I will show using his explanations in the allegory of the cave.
The position I hold can be divided into three separate parts. I will prove them one by one. The first part of the claim is that both Descartes and Plato value mind, philosophy, and wisdom the most. In his allegory of the cave, Plato describes the way how people get their wisdom. At first, they are trapped in a dark cave, able to see only reflections on the walls and hear echoes which they think are the reality. This is the state when they do not use their intellect properly. But when they are dragged to the surface with bright sun, after a while, they are able to see real objects clearly and know the actual reality. Plato says this journey can be interpreted as "the ascent of the soul into the intellectual world." (Plato, Cave 257) Descartes, in Meditation II, comes to a conclusion that he is not some animal, but a thinking thing. He concludes that mind is what makes us humans – “while I think I am something” (Descartes, Meditation II 4). These arguments show that for both philosophers, the mind and wisdom were the most important. The second claim is that Plato considers contact with others beneficial if not necessary for learning. In the allegory of the cave, he makes a strong claim that when released, the prisoner needs to be dragged to the light and held tight because his eyes will be hurt by the sun's bright light (Plato, Cave 255). From this explanation, we can find that when a person gets to the whole new level of understanding (just like a prisoner to the light) much of the new learned will not be understandable or even painful. At this moment, it is very easy to take a step back and return to the old understandable cave. This is the point where the contact with others, especially the ones who are already comfortable with the daylight, is beneficial if not necessary. The third claim is that Descartes stands that the contact with other will not be useful. In the Second Meditation, he explores the mechanism of perception. He shows that we perceive the external world mainly with our mind, not the senses. From this, he concludes that external data helps him to know his own mind better and that, consequently, the mind can be perceived "more easily and clearly than [] anything else." (Descartes Meditation II 8) And if this is so then, the contact with the other will not bring anything useful but distract the learner from exploring and perceiving own mind.
However, it may be opposed, that Plato in his allegory of the cave did not show that contact with another is beneficiary, moreover it may even be a hindrance. In the next part of the allegory, Plato shows that when the prisoner who is already used to the light of the sun descends back into the cave, he will be rejected by the prisoners. When he tries to help them and drag to the light, they will resist and can even put him to death. This is why it may be stated that Plato intended to say that others may be a hindrance. However, if we explore this position deeper, we will find that others do not present an obstacle to learning in this case. The descent of the prisoner to the cave is not the act of learning in its pure sense as is the ascent. It is his desire to help his former counterparts. They are in this case, not the obstacle for learning, but it is they who help him learn about the realities of the cave and make him an even wiser person. And from this, it follows that they help him and that contact with others is beneficiary to learning according to Plato.
The philosophical inquiries of Plato and Descartes are important not only to historians or professional philosophers, but they also have huge implications for our everyday lives. Plato's position on learning and contact with others shows that when we start to learn something new (philosophy, for example), much will be unclear and not understandable at the beginning. The reasons and values of the new world will be wholly different. On this path, we need someone who will drag us to this knowledge and prevent us from running back. Descartes, in his turn, claims that the best and easiest that we can do is perceive and explore our own mind. In studying philosophy, this would advise not reading more and more texts, but reflecting on own knowledge and finding answers within own mind. Descartes’ method would imply reflecting more on how do we understand philosophical ideas, how do they change our minds and ourselves.
References
Descartes, Rene. Meditations On First Philiosophy. Print.
Plato. Allegory Of The Cave. Print.
