What is Real? (Plato's Allegory of the Cave) - 8-Bit Philosophy

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8-Bit Philosophy, where classic video games introduce famous thinkers, problems, and concepts with quotes, teachings, and more. Watch as Plato’s Allegory of the Cave (presented in The Republic around 380BC) is introduced through The Legend of Zelda.
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Episode 1: What is Real?
(Plato's Allegory of the Cave)
Written & Directed by: Jared Bauer
Narrator: Nathan Lowe
Animation Producer: MB X. McClain
Original Music & Sound by: David Krystal (www.davidkrysta...)
Academic Consultant: Mia Wood
Producer & Additional Artwork by: Jacob S. Salamon
© 2014 Wisecrack, Inc. -

[@Vsauce3]

Who knew 8-bits could have so much depth? A+ would reevaluate existence again.

[@ThomasSchoberl]

My philosophy teacher in college would appreciate my understanding of this video.

[@fasthope5128]

Probably not the game designers we put meaning into objects that have no meaning

[@chris55729]

Its basically Plato who has so much depth...

[@GoodAvatar]

Luke Xaxas Frankly, I'm more of a Socrates and Aristotle fan, myself. Plato CAN be interesting, but he's also a giant dick.

[@AirIUnderwater]

Too scary; would not bang.@_@

[@WhatsTrending]

Why isn't everything explained in 8-bit? It makes things so much more interesting!

[@BrendaLaneEXL]

I wish philosophy had presented this way when I took it so many years ago. :)

[@foxmetro1]

Finally. I never understood that concept fully. The examples always through me off. This visual really helped.

[@das0716]

+Nick Schafer threw*

[@chikachikaa1434]

i read this in rick sanchez' voice with all the extra letters as burps i don't know why

[@Participant]

Love this new series from ***** on 8-Bit Philosophy! Can't wait to watch more episodes!

[@ДарьяШевякова-о2л]

2× ]

[@FeliciaCroall]

Love this!

[@josephwright2922]

Concrete

[@PatriciaMcGowan52]

Loving this!

[@JamesLastovich]

Amazing, how your simple cartune helps you ponder the deepest questions of life.

[@jaguarhouse333]

So what I got from this video: just like the people looking at the wall can only see things as their reflection on the wall, we can only see things as their reflection in ourselves. We can never completely remove subjectivity from our perception of the world around us, so we will never know true objective "reality", if it even exists

[@UltraAGame]

This was freaking AMAZING! We did this in philosophy class last month and it was well put in this video.

[@n00ph]

the production quality of your channel is absolutely fantastic. keep up the good work, sparky!

[@drbobert00able]

I think this was a great starting point. Unfortunately there are a lot of people who have never heard of the allegory of the cave. It's a wonderful thought and makes you question reality, but the concept is easy to grasp. I'm really looking forward to how this show develops. Keep up the great work!

[@Redem10]

"Well excuuuuuuse me princess, but you are sackle by perception!"

[@jphiled6554]

"Well excuuuuuuse me princess! That's just a imperfect form!"

[@admiralhood8646]

Shackled

[@mikefraley748]

Great vid! One of my intro students just shared this with me. I love Zelda and I teach philosophy. So, this is pretty much a perfect merger of my interests! Not to mention you've done a fantastic job in boiling down Plato's metaphysics into about two minutes. I wouldn't have thought you could do so much with that short a period of time.

[@iAreDuffie]

Omg, I love how you played Plato's theory out with Legend of Zelda. It just makes us gamers all that more able to understand it.

[@vaulttechnition2576]

I swear, if I lose my perception of reality and all I see is the triforce in the damn void. I'm gonna lose my shit.

[@Johnyster]

You don't ever had any drug trip, do you ?

[@kingfloppynipthe3rd24]

Vault Technition you would have no shit to loose .just utter acceptance of it

[@alfredodeguzmanjr.6456]

Hеу Yоutubе ! *GEТ Unlimitеd Gоld Bаrs & Аngеls Рееermаnеnt to уоur АdVеnturе Cаpitalist Aсcоunt* nоw => twitter.com/5b410a1c15aa13ea5/status/779269023557038080 Whаt is Reеаl Рlаtо s Allegоry of thееее Cаvеe  8 Bit РРPРhilosoрhу

[@boricuaislander]

that's the problem isn't it. the trip only makes some people's view of reality more clear, so it nothing really changes. thus perception intensifies and so does insanity.

[@x3naurus]

Pretty much the best conflict-resolution video I've ever seen. This... might have changed my life.

[@beatpapes]

My teacher (or some other person who made the textbook document about the allegory) linked this for our Philosophy subject, and as a big fan of zelda myself, I truly love everything from the style and explanation of this video. Again, I love this.

[@JarinUdom]

The prisoner saw a 16-bit world, but he didn't know there is a perfect world that has infinite bits, mode 7, AND blast processing.

[@justbeemariee]

Thank you so much for making this. Now, more people will see that philosophy can be fun and awesome! I greatly appreciate this and can't wait to see more from the 8-bit Philosophy Series.

[@RyanJohnson]

This deserves its own channel!

[@unavailable.mp4]

8 bit is what made this channel stand out! Please continue with this series.

[@Ancor3]

Wow, this was even better than expected.

[@KillasaurusTex]

This was by far my favorite story in Philosophy. Great idea for a new series. Looking forward to more!

[@SlammedTiger]

I just had my damn mind blewn to 8-bits.

[@iminthemomentru3003]

If you want your mind blown watch "why didn't anybody tell me" on you tube!

[@RunningToNotBeSeen]

The production value of this is great! I love this idea. Just as Thug Notes makes classic literature easier to understand, this makes classic philosophy easier to understand. And both are really fun to watch. Great job guys!

[@patanu]

Funny this is, I've heard about the allegory of the cave referenced a dozen times before but this really spells it out for yeah. Good job.

[@Blargrob]

And with this, the channel became even more my favorite.

[@DriesNys]

I think Plato will stay very relevant for long times to come.

[@budibausto]

we need philosophers to replace politicians for sure

[@monolyth421]

People who have broken through on DMT feel a lot like the person leaving the cave

[@VileSentry]

+monolyth421 Or maybe DMT and any drug revelation is just another kind of shadow, in this case a shadow being cast by the chemical reaction in your brain. Just a theory.

[@jasoncornish9481]

+DriscolDevil I agree, experience on hallucinogens tells us these chemicals break down a lot of our brain's connections (and in limited cases heightens some) and what we see or feel is just our brains filling in the gaps for our bent perception at the time. I know of the drug revelations, but on reflection it's just yourself making sense of the world when you have a lack of core thought processes.

[@VileSentry]

Jason Cornish That's how I feel too. I don't want to seem to be dismissing the experience, a psycedelic experience can be amazing, but too often people forget that it's not some divine union but it's something caused by ingesting a chemical.

[@uremawifenowdave]

+Jason Cornish Actually I would argue that DMT actually temporarily increases the feedback of certain connections, especially in the visual cortex. It's this increasing feedback that creates the DMT trip and I believe it's this feedback that informs the majority of hallucinogens. I feel it's also the reason why some people tripping on different hallucinogens can fall into mental loops that they find it hard to extricate themselves from.

[@VileSentry]

Uremawife Nowdave So you are saying it makes you "more aware" which if was true, would mean everyone should have shared hallucinations, not just similar themes. It's fine, not saying it's bad, but it's also not "reality"

[@timmyshroyer74]

Very awesome video, dude! I hope you continue with this series.

[@xmgaming2444]

This entire comment section: "Everybody who doesn't believe the same thing I do is still in the cave." Stop it. Just stop.

[@lizerg700]

But this artificially produced drug I heard people were doing could help us ascend into cosmic beings!

[@Bruno-hd9qo]

Sorry. You are still in the cave.

[@amandalovelace1698]

Literally this was the best 2:45 minutes I've spent. I learned so much!! I can't wait for the next episode!

[@romanv6887]

The Rick and Morty series sort of elaborates on this idea of the Allegory in the Cave. Rick is like the enlightened one yet instead of his mind "being blown" he reacts seemingly depressed about his existence. You can however see in Morty that he experiences a sense of awe on his adventures with Rick.

[@Andrew_John0]

Now it makes sense! I thought I had understood it well enough when I read it, but to watch it be explained in simple terms like this gives me greater understanding.

[@quidestveritas659]

This might be the greatest thing in the history of everything ever.

[@AdainRussia]

Plato is my favorite philosopher and this captures the cave so well. Great job!

[@TheDmntdmnky]

I spent half my childhood playing LOZ, wrapping your mind around these concepts is like trying to beat the water temples.....

[@tophatrabbit673]

This might sound weird, but I found this video very helpful, because I've tried to understand the Allegory of the Cave several times, but this is the first time it "clicked". Thanks, Sparky and co.! I feel enlightened!

[@massenergyspacetime]

Another way of saying this is that every object is a spiritual object that you never can understand because you never come into direct contact with it. The only thing you know is the hologram that is created within your mind. The spiritual object is eternal and never changes. The only thing that changes is the hologram or mirrored reflection of the eternal object as our understanding changes. The hologram is created by the sum of all sensory input from your sensory organs. Light travels through your eye and is converted into an electrical signal on your retina. This signal travels to the occipital lobe of the brain and is interpreted there. What you are seeing is the interpretation of electrical signals of light reflected off the spiritual object, but you are not seeing or sensing the object directly. You're interpreting the reflected light off the object. The same happens with your sense of sound, touch, smell and taste. You are living in a mirror world. A movie which shows this clearly is the Never Ending Story in which the hero Bastian looks into a mirror and sees himself, Atreyu, in the World of fantasia or the world of our dreams.

[@milliesave]

+1

[@milliesave]

+1

[@controlequebrado4455]

that's hologram theory for you

[@BoopScoopDoop]

+1 So to add a take on it. The people we see aren't the people we know exist. There are people (their outward appearance) And then there are People (each individual's thoughts, their soul, etc.) So then what's beyond the soul itself?

[@vinson311]

This is one of my favorite KZbin videos ever. Plato is an OG OG triple OG!

[@redcloud563]

Not too shabby, I look forward to the next episode. However I still prefer plain Thug Notes.

[@Vineor]

thank the universe you guys exist, explaining this in such an engaging way

[@fernspain]

Thug Notes you just surprise me more and more... BRILLIANT.

[@TheCoolestPetinTown]

Impressive explanation, I needed to know this for my Allegory of the Cave quiz tomorrow. Who knew video game-style videos would carry so much depth? Appreciate it.

[@kyoko703]

Right at 1:49 that is when you realize Edward Snowden and all other NSA/intelligence whistle blowers must be feeling when they returned to the cave and revealed to everyone that the world is not what it seems.

[@paprhrt]

I love that you did this! I know I asked for it a while ago I'm so happy you finally did it!

[@spencerjulian8712]

Combine my two favorite things philosophy of the mind and 8 bit video games

[@bootstrapbill98]

I've been trying to wrap my head around Plato's cave for years, and this finally did it

[@KreativeKill]

i wonder if we ll ever be done with plato

[@mortenpedersen763]

+KreativeKill We've built our human ideals on Plato. Our understanding of what it is to simply ''be'' is a historical progress.

[@KreativeKill]

Morten Pedersen he's a bit narcissistic. I wonder if we'll ever talk about that and not just the good things we learned from him. No one is infallible. Its important to note that.

[@mortenpedersen763]

KreativeKill Well Plato did say that we humans are special in our way of logos. That's how our world is built. We are above everything else. We even talk about killing animals humanely and something being human. It's going to be awkard when we meet aliens.

[@VileSentry]

+KreativeKill Yeah but judging a philosophy based on who a person was doesn't seem that productive. Why does it matter if he was a narcissistic? Should we disregard the work of Einstein because he was a selfish asshole? I don't think anyone claimed plato was infallible. Admiring the work of a person isn't the same as deifying them..

[@KreativeKill]

DriscolDevil holy fuck mate. seriously fuckin fuck dude. i dont no, what do you want to me to say? You win? alright fine, you win! CONGRATZ!

[@babypanda8u]

That was pretty cool! I've always been interested in different philosophies, so a format like this might be a good way to get it in little bites

[@powersurge4290]

Here's my take, because I think a lot of people don't really understand the depth of this (PLEASE CORRECT ME IF I'M WRONG) Our reality consists of time, we see things through events of changes (1:37). For example, we see a baby born, and through time that baby grows older and older, until it dies... this is our reality, we call it "time". Now, Imagine if you could see someone from birth to death, all in one moment without any time in between... think it as a painting on the wall, with your birth and every stage of change, all the way to your death, and all this on one single image - that is true reality. Now, instead of using the baby, let's use the Universe, what if you could see the moment the Universe was created, all the way up to the end of the Universe all in one single image... that is what I like to call the "God View", because you see things for what they truly are, not just a moment. This is not where it ends neither, what if there where other paths, other destinies that where created according to every action you took? You probably would see many timelines, many beginnings, many ends, all in one single image. PS: Sorry for any typos... : /

[@moonstriker7350]

That's Laplace's demon.

[@firstlylasty8687]

I like your thinking :) Einstein said something like "the only reason for time is so everything doesn't happen at once". He figured out, mathematically, that time is a dimension just like length, width and height. It is bendable. And he says the same thing as you (in different words/language): there is a "long view" where one could theoretically "see" time stretching itself out from start to finish, because that's what it physically does. The thing is, light and all matter are subject to the same physics, so one could never "perceive" or "see" the long view. There is no conscious entity that could possibly see the painting you describe - reality just isn't structured that way. But maybe there are other ways of perceiving/existing that my brain is not structured to conceive or understand.... ...interesting stuff, anway

[@Cyvro]

That's just like in Slaughterhouse-five.. how the tralfamadorians see everything

[@laurenbowker3151]

If I remember right the tralfamadorians couldn't see Billy and Who? (Moutana Wildhack) when about to make love in the transparent Bucky ball. As far as we know Lol Cyvro

[@stephanielewis9014]

You guys are wonderful! So glad I found this channel! Keep asking the questions that so few know how to answer.

[@ThexXGeNeRaLXx]

so its basically like the matrix. do we know our true reality ?

[@DanielFair]

In the original story, Plato describes how when the prisoner leaves the cave, his eyes will hurt because he's so used to the darkness (it's a metaphor for how confusing and difficult philosophy is, and how you really have to think out of the box). In the Matrix, after Neo has been pulled out and he's in the Nebuchadnezzar (I think, he might be in Zion) he asks Morpheus why his eyes hurt, to which Morpheus replies "it's because you've never had to use them before," which is totally a reference to this. So yeah, the Matrix (the first one mainly; the second and third, not so much; the pulled it back with Animatrix though, and the Animatrix had loads of awesome scifi elements to it too) is a two-hour explanation of Plato's philosophy, with a few other ideas thrown in, like predestination/determinism vs free will, belief in a saviour or a god, and other stuff like that. Goddamn it's such a great film.

[@billaa49]

Daniel Fair INDEED! PLEASE MAKE MORE RECOMMENDATIONS! Those of us were baffled by it are seeking more!!

[@johnblechl]

No, the Matrix is basically like this.

[@Melvinshermen]

gendalfff don,t for get dark city and inception

[@dhaley6]

I have a philosophy final next week and this made the world of forms so much easier to understand. Thank you very much!

[@ReadingMartin]

This was great.

[@Zellig]

The Matrix Has You, Link. Seriously like.... we wrote your source code and stuff.

[@empty_cognizance2234]

+Zellig Wear the blue ring? Or the red ring?

[@Ofisil]

So the I AM ERROR guy is Morpheus?

[@nuckymancini7013]

Error @Boss ⊙

[@xMiCHaElGaBRiEL]

Please keep making these. I normally don't want watch as much of your book reviews because I don't want to ruin the books I haven't read. I promise to watch all of these though.

[@Persian_Rug_Merchant]

Is world we see around us the actual real world? Or is it an internal perceptual copy of that world generated by neural processes in our brain? IMO the later is the more modern view which fits better with my scientific world view.

[@jadpole]

Iorveth Well, the basic "axiom" of science is that our perception of the world, although incorrect (optical illusions) is at least an approximation of reality. Then, the scientific method (& mathematical modeling, ...) is a way to look for a better approximation (Newtonian/Lagrangian mechanics, general relativity, ..., every iteration better than the last) than what our brain, wired for _romance_, can produce from _common sense_. The objective of science, thus, is to _remove_ the human constant from our interpretation or reality, as long as the basic axiom of science holds, which we cannot ever be sure of, but assume anyway. So, one could say that the world that we perceive is _just our perception_. It is not reality, but at most an approximation of reality, generated by receptors all over our body and by chemical reactions in our brain.

[@Persian_Rug_Merchant]

Jessy Pelletier-Lemire Is my brain wired for romance?

[@CONJOPI]

Jessy Pelletier-Lemire So, in a way the, objectivity does not exist. By that logic, everything objective is truly only subjective.

[@jadpole]

Iorveth Well, by _romantic_ I mean that our first reflex to explain things is to create legends, e.g. mushroom circles thought to be the work of fairies. djf2564​ The way I see it is: humans cannot be completely objective. This is why we need the scientific method; it's a way to take human bias out of the quest for knowledge. Objectivity _is_ a thing, facts exist; the problem is humans.

[@CONJOPI]

Jessy Pelletier-Lemire There's a dilemma with our use of the scientific method and our tests of objectivity with it. The purpose of the method is, fundamentally, to either confirm or refute our hypotheses about reality. But, through the process of answer one of these hypotheses, many more hypotheses arise from one question. Answer that hypothesis, and you are left with more questions. More hypotheses. The scientific method is creating more questions about the universe than it is answering them. We use it as a tool of induction, then deduce the real bulk of what we were wondering about in the first place. Those deductions need confirmation by the scientific method and induction, thereby requiring more deduction. With multiple hypotheses being tested and arriving at the same amount of reliability, say the kind of duality arising from general relativity or Euclidean Geometry vs. Non-Euclidean Geometry, the scientific method does indeed help technology and society advance, but because of convenience, not objective reality.

[@ramendawg]

Great execution for exemplifying all points, well done to fit these aspects worth thinking about in into under 3 mins. Loved the main use of Zelda theme. Plato would be proud.

[@SB-ki3jw]

Someone returning from an eternal world and is killed for spreading of this information, hmmm sounds familiar.

[@DogAndEazy]

do you mean Jesus?

[@DogAndEazy]

+Lash i'm curious, what do you mean when you say that if he's talkig about Jesus He's got the story wrong?

[@jeff-eo6ee]

+G Haslam yeah, he's talking about Jesus.

[@SB-ki3jw]

Truth is not subject to time. Also the Jews foretold his coming hundreds of years earlier as well so...

[@IchKomentiereNur123]

+shaun Brown The "mainstream Jews" of the time also rejected him and to this day dont see him as prophet, since their savior is still to come. Thats the thing with prophecy, anyone at any given time can fit into its mold and can even be manipulated into him/herself belive it to be true. So its always the question of if the prophecy was truly fullfilled, or was it acknowledged by enough people which saw personal gain in it?

[@themoonisironic]

I love this channel and this segment! It's an excellent way of learning philosophy is a straight-forward. I'm so glad i found this channel (thank you, MatPat).

[@bryd4881]

We know we are stuck in a cave. Hell, we know exactly how long we have been stuck in this god forsaken cave. But we can't escape the cave. For every time we do, we are met with a tunnel which takes us back to our cave. However, one day, we shall have exhausted every single possible combination of tunnels which will lead us to the outside of the cave. But...we aren't sure how many possibilities there even are. Every tunnel turns into two tunnels. Every two into four, and so on. Get comfortable, we'll be stuck here a long time.

[@JBabyLeather]

So excited about this new series. Very interesting.

[@EvilParagon2]

I've often thought that if Shadows are like, 3D object cast 2D shadow, 2D cast 1D, then surely a 4D object cast a 3D shadow. Now, a human can only visualise the fourth dimension in the third. Like how when you look at a picture of X, Y and Z axises, that is 3 dimensions in the second. Credible theories do suggest the 4th dimension looks like a worm, however you could see every side at once. Imagine looking at a texture file for an animated model (just for another 3D in 2D example). A slice of this 4th dimension yields us the 3rd. Anyway finally back on topic. I always thought that the 4th Dimension was where more reality exist. I also found this theory that there are as many as 10 dimensions (11 including 0th). With that knowledge came 5D objects are more real than 4th, but both are less than 7th... But recently I figured, you know what? I live in the Third Dimension. 3D is real enough. Not to mention seeing a 4th Dimension could probably overload my mind and kill me.

[@Wolfphototech]

Evil Paragon 2 The 4th Dimension is time .

[@EvilParagon2]

Wolfphototech_Gaming_News My comment isn't about that. My comment is simply about visualising. Also 4D being time still fits there. Imagine a 3D photo of the universe. Then in the smallest possible increment of time, another photo. Put them one planck length away from each other. I also mean like drawing two circles and the left is 1cm from the other left, not like two circles separated. That is a small cut of the 4th dimension. The 4th Dimension is every frame of the 3D universe all put together like that. Now think again, if an object in the 4th Dimension showed up in our universe, we probably could only see its shadow, which would be a 3D object.... probably.

[@Incvios]

4th dimension is time yes but a 3d object is a shadow of a 4d object, we live with time but do not see time. A tessaract is a 4th dimension cube which we can only draw in a 3d shadow in our 3 dimensional world. A 4th dimensional being would look something like a snail and could see its past and future but not change his past or future, in order to change ones past or future you need to be in at least the 6th dimension.

[@EvilParagon2]

4D is time. 5D is branching time. You can travel along the 4 dimensional path of a 5 dimensional tree so to speak, and then simply find the crossroads and go up the other path. 6D is... I forget. I should rewatch the theory. 7D however is universe. Every event, future, past and alternate happens within.

[@CitedHarbor0]

i love the allegory of the cave. well done with the visuals.

[@teatea4496]

The Force, The Tao, The Way, The Dharma, The Law.

[@91jubaku]

it's all the same, and they're all paradoxical

[@ricardo57578]

You are full of shit.

[@hessonr]

Sparky just kicked it up a notch!

[@kezron88]

Man this was amazing. Plato's big mistake was thinking that reality is split into to, immaterial and material. He believed that immaterial one was the real one, however, Reality is the combination between the two. Can't wait for next episode.

[@noticias6111]

And yet "All [*Western*] philosophy is a footnote to Plato"-Alfred North Whitehead.Can you think of any Western philosophers who got to thinking that point early on? b/c outside of Eastern philosophy and most religions on the whole,Western philosophy imo has always had a tendency to overly nit-picky about how it's possible that reality is a combination of material and immaterial.

[@SaintNicholasBankstown]

No, the ultimate material was perfect: the ultimate, base forms that all imperfect objects are made to represent.

[@janeyrevanescence12]

Man, my friend will love this! He's a Philosophy major and he loves talking about Plato and Socrates.

[@anzwertree]

If I could give this a standing ovation right now I would. Well, technically ... I could display my appreciation by standing up at my desk. But there's nobody here to perceive that jester visually. If a single node stands up on a network, but there is no user around to authenticate the session, could an ARP request successfully execute? But then I suppose the comment section is no place for a philosophical discussion. Or, is it? ...

[@anzwertree]

My makeup and hat say differently.

[@GZusKriced]

I hope this series takes off. It has some serious potential.

[@MrAkilio]

The forms are higher than physical material, I agree, and we dont know them because our world IS a metaphorical cave in that way. However let us look at some examples of life's patterns. If you discover the macroscopic world, you can then discover the microscopic. There's an infinity to the small just as there is to the large, the universe. Honestly, once you are with the forms, there'll still be another level above you. In conclusion, we can't be expected to the know the forms, this makes no difference. What makes a difference, is understanding you're below higher levels of self, and science won't permit you to understand, nor even describe the universe.

[@klwroten]

What an ironic statement. Without science you couldn't even begin to describe what we DO know about, and yet you say science won't allow us to describe what we don't know about because there is something "other" that science hasn't found yet. You say this with no evidence, just a hunch. Maybe the reality is you don't know how science actually works?

[@klwroten]

Ok... what do you consider "more to the story"? I mean, scientists KNOW there's more to the story, that's why they keep searching for more answers and never settle. We don't have all the answers yet. But why assume there is something that exists that science can't find? If we can't find it, does it even matter that it exists? Does it affect us in any way?

[@forgotaboutbre]

klwroten "what an ironic statement, without science...." Such is the paradox of knowing hehehe

[@zqxzqxzqx1]

Thanks again, y'all! This went a little farther into the allegory than I'd ever heard before.

[@ietsization]

Holy shit, that was awesome!

[@onesidedfilms]

Dude I haven't even watched it yet and I already love the idea! I like where you're going with this!!!

[@bencutter9084]

Who's to say that the shadows aren't more real that the outside world. Theoretically this process works backwards also.

[@gb6710]

Theoretically you can suck these nuts.

[@Starman256]

Original Taboo That comment just made my evening, thanks.

[@B333D33]

MrGenericGamerMK35 It really did

[@Khirashi10]

So, someone living outside gets caged, and suddenly the confinement of a smaller place becomes more real than freedom? You make no sense at all.

[@usb333]

***** I don't think that's what that is.

[@decorusveritas]

What a wonderful way to share and discuss philosophy. Awesome!

[@adlermax13]

Nice :D 8 bit science would be epic! How about: Theory of relativity

[@JasonPruitt]

This was great, the cave people only see the shadow, we only see the reflection of light, guess the reality is in the physical interactions. Keep up the good work.

[@ZacTheFirst]

"That would threaten their narrow beliefs, and they might even kill him." Sounds like most religions nowadays. AND HEY HEY HEY! Wait! I ain't sayin' NOTHIN' bout God not bein' real, cause for all I know, maybe he is, maybe he ain't, but he has yet to be proven or completely disproven. However, what my original statement was for, is how goddamn closed minded so many religious people are. It's truly sad.

[@gregchung9244]

+KoolDawg99e Most religious people are actuallly pretty tolerant, its jsut the media likes to show the crazies

[@gregchung9244]

+Greg Chung you shouldn't judge too rashly

[@thegaurdianhuman8963]

+KoolDawg99 .. U forgot that STALIN AND MAO WHO WERE ATHEIST COMMUNISTS KILLED 25 AND 40 MILLION PEOPLE... Lol if anything the proof is in the pudding..

[@ZacTheFirst]

+TheGaurdianHuman And Hitler was religious. Your point being?

[@thegaurdianhuman8963]

KoolDawg99 ,, Why did Mao kill 40 Million people? To impose his atheistic Communism in china Obviously. So your specific generalization of religious people being close minded is wrong.. as we have examples of atheists who have caused greater terror in this world.. due to their own skewed and narrow minded beliefs. Lol when did hitler become religious?!?! Also if anything, his reasons for waging war were not religious.. but actually Nationalistic.

[@beatriz.paciencia]

This is actually crazy. Like I was studying philosophy because I have a test in about 2 days, and I was trying to find a fun video about the cave and found this masterpiece! It's my favourite video game franchise ever!!! hihihihiihih

[@MadBunnyRabbit]

There is a flaw in this logic. If there is some sort of light behind them, they would know that something showing on a wall means there is something behind them, simply becuase they would notice their own shadows. Take that Plato.

[@MadBunnyRabbit]

alice x. The only good thing about philosophy is that it kinda gave birth to logic. Everything else is a one big hypothetical scernario to do some thinking exercises that seem significant but mean nothing at all. What I'm trying to say is that I understand the point Plato tried to make, but not only the example contains a major error it also aserts that most people wont agree with you. And yes to a degree he was right, but when talking about reality we didn't find anything and if we will there are scientist that will mesure it. It's no longer ancient greek. Now for the error. Ok. There is light behind you. You see a shadow. What do you notice when you move? OMG the shadow also moves. So for your limited knowlage shadow is some sort of "reflection" of yourself and your friends. So when a new shadow apears, what is the logical conclusion? There mast be something new in the room that wall is "reflecting". Everyone would know that.

[@MadBunnyRabbit]

alice x. I don't need chemistry to feel better about myself and my life. Nor do I need superstitions or spirituality. What exacly is this "modern cultural dogma"? Following logic? If anyone needs to "evolve" (which is such a abhorrent use of the word) is you. Into a logical beaing that invented so many things that together formed everything you are using today. Including and emphasising, the computer.

[@daxdigitalus]

MadBunnyRabbit Plato's cave went right over your head. The light source doesn't need to be directly behind the observer. Their shadows do not have to be visible to them. In addition, how would they understand the shadows if they have never seen the light source or any other objects. "There mast be something new in the room that wall is "reflecting". Everyone would know that." Why would everyone know that? It's supposed to be an allegory for reality, and it is a very good one, considering all the objects we consider solid are actually made of energy waves. People saw lightning for millions of years before figuring out what it was. Humans watched the sun rise and set for millions of years before they figured out that we are on a spinning ball, revolving around other spinning balls. If you just look at the moon it seems quite obvious to us now, hell, it should be obvious, you can see the angles of light on it and know which way the sun is relative to it. Prior to having that knowledge though, it was a warrior in a chariot riding across the sky. Plato's cave went over your head because you presume too much.

[@MadBunnyRabbit]

alice x. The great thing about logic are semantics. Not only it allows me to see the differance betwen two notions, it also gives me the ablitity to better communicate. So when I see "or" in a sentance I understand the the writer thinks of two ideas separated by it as different. Two questions: Isn't coniously: doing something with awareness? So you are awarly aware? - just a logic thing. Secound: why is it so scary for you that we have no intrinsic purpouse in life? Morality comes from logic, not some spiritual nonsense, nor from god (sinc you started talking about the concept). I want to survive and anything someone will do to diminish my chances should therfore be punished. Here is your fundation of morality. Keep in mind that it was social progress that abolished slavery and did that by force, not some spiritual whatever. Don't do to others that you don't want to be done to you. It's as simple as that. We reached (well most of us at least) to that conclusion throught logic. And empathy and natural selection that favored "moral" people over the "immoral". And yet again, what people before today considered moral and natural and normal, we would be pretty shocked and disqusted by it. Yeah, that order is called evolution. If life as we know it wouldn't fallow those rules, we wouldn't be here right now. It's not some secret nonsense that existed from the begining of life, but a logical conclusion of natural selection. And what paradigms are they? You seem to know a lot about me without meeting me even once. Wisdom: The quality of having experience, knowledge, and good judgement That logic... made me so conquered. I see what good heuristics did for you. Assuming things about others. Using fallacies to support arguments. Evading questions. Missusing words. You know what? I preffer to stay conquered than being stupid. One final thing. "localized, relativistic abstraction". I realy have no idea what the hell you are trying to say here. Relativistc? Are you trying to create an adjective of relativism? Logic has nothing to do with relativism. Abstraction? Well logic is an abstract concept, so do math, and? Also how is it localised when I take into account hisotry, that's oposite of relativism. I'm so confused right now. Please go back to school or something and maybe then reply. Or just don't reply at all. I feel like you are making me stupid. Go away.

[@MadBunnyRabbit]

Christina Aguilera You know what? Now I feel bad about wasting my time to answer her. XD This is so much better responce than what I did and so much shorter XD

[@tylergerald]

So fitting that the first episode is The Allegory of the Cave. This seems like it's going to be an amazing series!

[@eXtremeDR]

If you are experience a reality in which the IRS exists then you can be sure it's not a dream.

[@artemisioromeroycarver6964]

it's a nightmare

[@ballsrgrossnugly]

+Artemisio Romero Y Carver buddum tshhhhh.....

[@pendalink]

It's been a long time and this is still one of my favorite videos

[@LillyianPuppy]

Hmmm, I am not entirely sure what to think about this yet. I will need time. Until then, I anxiously await another episode of Thug Notes when your vacation is over.

[@tinybunnymelody]

this is excellent. hope for more in the future.

[@nathanoliver9237]

I am willing to see how the others as this video was quiet intresting .

[@YuckNasty]

I may be incredibly late to the game but I have come to the conclusion that this allegory is perfect for understanding the state of minds of people born in vastly different social economic standings

[@GMCiaramella]

Brilliant, this is going to be an excellent series!

[@ImTheBhattman]

Can we get some Asian philosphy before next semester?!?!?!

[@joeyaktosh8294]

Im asian, my philosophy is ( my parents philosophy is) BE DOCTOR OR DIE! its true, i haven`t gotten a B since i was born, Only A`s....

[@SquirrelFromGradLife]

Aktosh then why do you drive so bad?

[@Des420]

SquirrelFromGradLife They practice for the test by reading...not driving.

[@XBelethorX]

SquirrelFromGradLife i.imgur.com/LdgZDWp.jpg

[@noticias6111]

Aktosh `_` Seriously though,would your parents happen to know anything about Confucianism,Buddhism,Daoism or even any Asian political philosophy from the past ~15o years,would they?

[@krisimpossible]

2 years of grad school and this is the best way I've heard any of this explained, great stuff!

[@GallowglassAxe]

Isn't this the plot of the first Matrix movie? There is a reality more real than what people believe. The common person can only see what is presented to him which is actually a shadow of the programming of the matrix. When a person breaks free of the perspective he returns with a higher understanding. It also shows that not everyone can that existence and would kill in order to return to the life they once had.

[@FeralDruidify]

LOVE THIS! Keep up the series.

[@wanderingdude777]

ehh... not what I was expecting honestly. Thought the series would delve into philosophies involved with the game (i.e. Bioshock). Plus, the myth of the cave is kind-a well known... at least it is for me. I do see a lot of positive comments, so maybe it is teaching people stuff. Just.... hmmm... idk stay truer to the philosopher personality in their betrayal? I don't think Plato would lol if one who escaped the myth of the cave was killed by the cave dwellers.

[@Casper1993]

I really would really enjoy it if Sparky explain the whole story behind the Bioshock series. (including Infinite)

[@franmadaraki8688]

Blaze Casper But that game was painfully shallow and poorly written.

[@Casper1993]

Fran Madaraki The first one? Or Infinite? Bioshock 1 had a good storyline where Infinite tangled and fucked with it. If you think infinite is bad I can sorta agree because it's stupidly confusing how they worked the whole "Multiple Universe" theory but Bioshock 1 was gruesome and deeply thought out to change the players mood. Granted, every ending in a Bioshock game SUCKED including the DLC of Infinite. But it draws you to see what would come of certain things or the story itself.

[@franmadaraki8688]

Yeah I meant infinite, my bad I'm used to everyone talking about that these days.

[@asendimchev1996]

Fran Madaraki Nah. It might not be the life chaning experience that people hype it up to be but Infinite is not shallow. It delves into so much history, psychology and physics that it's impossible to dismiss it so easily without being wrong. At the very least, it sparked a lot of discussion, its defiinitely a topic worth talking about.

[@nadjaart]

''They might even kill him...'' Plato: Lol

[@DamianReloaded]

Could someone tell me how to leave the cave in this game?

[@naplzt4k]

Unplug the game ;)

[@wynandvandermerwe2326]

I can think of two ways. (A) Get into a permanent psychotic state or (B) though unproven wait for death like the rest of us

[@DamianReloaded]

I was expecting more sorta the "cheat codes" to get pass to the next level. ^_^

[@wynandvandermerwe2326]

Damian Reloaded let me know when you find em. Walk around like a lunatic and tell everyone you love them. that might open some new doors.

[@droidBasher]

Tao of Programming, 8.2 : A master programmer noticed a novice's preoccupation with a hand-held computer game. “Excuse me,” he said, “may I examine it?” The novice handed the device to the master. “I see that the device claims to have three levels of play: Easy, Medium, and Hard,” said the master. “Yet every such device has another level of play, where the device seeks not to conquer the human, nor to be conquered by the human.” “Pray, great master, how does one find this mysterious setting?” The master dropped the device to the ground and crushed it underfoot. And suddenly the novice was enlightened.

[@230989]

5 years of university, and the best explanation of plato i've heard comes from a youtube video, thats not even 3 minutes long.

[@luf4rall]

plato smoked some good shit.

[@RaulFO]

Finally a show that asks the same questions that I do and won't let me sleep.

[@JNoelVelazquez]

I think scientists have to think a lil more... wait... they don't think they just see...

[@saiyaniam]

And ironically for you, thats what makes them great. They are not affected by the minds poor functions.

[@TheVeryWhiteGuy]

I'm confused by this comment honestly. Aren't scientists the ones that are actually thinking logically?

[@fredgdperry]

TheVeryWhiteGuy I think he means that all they can do is see the shadow on the wall of the cave. With pure science it's impossible for someone to know about the real object under those conditions. Just as it's impossible to know about plato's "true reality" if it existed under our current conditions. A chain would have to be broken first.

[@DanielFair]

saiyaniam You're wrong there. In order to understand what they see, they have to process the information in their brain. The brain makes sense of it all -- that's neurology 101. Furthermore, they must then hypothesise on causes of phenomena, which requires them to analyse, using their minds, the data. At every step along the way, rationality is involved in the scientific method, right down to sourcing materials and deciding how to go about doing an experiment. So obviously, they have to use their minds. In fact, if they didn't use their minds they wouldn't be alive, but science pushes for the view that we are our brains and nothing more. Finally, Galileo used philosophy to prove that objects fall at the same rate. Also, science used to be called "Natural Philosophy", and biology was started by Aristotle, one of the most famous philosophers ever to walk the earth. I'm sorry, it's that your ignorance astounds me.

[@saiyaniam]

Daniel Fair Experimental evidence requires zero interpretation. You are wrong. Something can either be proved or not. You can replicate it or you can't, it's real or it's not. You can't interpret facts falsely.

[@capcapulet8135]

I really enjoyed this. Very good idea; using my nostalgia and curiosity, you clever devil you! Would love to see more and find out a feel for the show. It didn't feel like a comedy thing, but I was smiling the whole time because of the animation. Can't wait to see where it's headed!

[@davidmsirois]

Did anyone actually try to click the start button? Or at least think about it?

[@endofyraaaaryfodne3389]

I confess, I did hover my mouse over the start button ahahaha