Plato’s Allegory of the Cave - Alex Gendler

Platonova alegorija pećine - Aleks Džendler (Alex Gendler)

Prevodilac: Ljiljana Colic Lektor: Mile Živković

What is reality, knowledge, the meaning of life?

Šta je stvarnost, znanje, smisao života?

Big topics you might tackle figuratively

Velike teme koje biste figurativno objasnili

explaining existence as a journey down a road or across an ocean,

predstavljajući postojanje kao putovanje niz drum ili preko okeana,

a climb, a war, a book, a thread, a game, a window of opportunity,

kao uspon, rat, knjigu, konac, igru, prozor mogućnosti,

or an all-too-short-lived flicker of flame.

ili kao plamičak isuviše kratkog daha.

2,400 years ago,

Pre 2400 godina,

one of history's famous thinkers said life is like being chained up in a cave,

jedan od najvećih mislilaca u istoriji je rekao da je život jednak zatočeništvu

forced to watch shadows flitting across a stone wall.

u pećini, gde ste prisiljeni da gledate senke koje se smenjuju na kamenom zidu.

Pretty cheery, right?

Veoma veselo, zar ne?

That's actually what Plato suggested in his Allegory of the Cave,

To je zapravo ono što je Platon predložio u svojoj alegoriji pećine,

found in Book VII of "The Republic,"

koja se nalazi u VII knjizi „Republike,”

in which the Greek philosopher envisioned the ideal society

u kojoj je ovaj grčki filozof zamislio idealno društvo

by examining concepts like justice, truth and beauty.

izučavajući koncepte poput pravde, istine i lepote.

In the allegory, a group of prisoners have been confined in a cavern since birth,

U alegoriji, skupina zatvorenika je od rođenja zavezana u pećini

with no knowledge of the outside world.

leđima okrenutim ulazu, bez mogućnosti da okrenu glave,

They are chained, facing a wall, unable to turn their heads,

i bez ikakvog znanja o spoljašnjem svetu.

while a fire behind them gives off a faint light.

Međutim, povremeno ljudi i druge stvari prolaze pored ulaza u pećinu,

Occasionally, people pass by the fire,

carrying figures of animals and other objects that cast shadows on the wall.

bacajući senke i odjeke na zid kojem su zatvorenici okrenuti.

Zatvorenici imenuju i klasifikuju ove iluzije,

The prisoners name and classify these illusions,

verujući da sagledavaju stvarna tela.

believing they're perceiving actual entities.

Suddenly, one prisoner is freed and brought outside for the first time.

Odjednom jedan zatvorenik biva oslobođen i izlazi napolje po prvi put.

The sunlight hurts his eyes and he finds the new environment disorienting.

Od svetlosti ga bole oči i ne može da se snađe u novom okruženju.

When told that the things around him are real,`

Kada su mu rekli da su stvari oko njega prave,

while the shadows were mere reflections, he cannot believe it.

a da su senke puki odrazi tih stvari, nije mogao da veruje.

The shadows appeared much clearer to him.

Senke su mu bile mnogo jasnije.

But gradually, his eyes adjust

Ali postepeno se njegov vid prilagodio

until he can look at reflections in the water,

te je mogao da gleda odraze u vodi,

at objects directly,

pravo u stvari,

and finally at the Sun,

i napokon u Sunce,

whose light is the ultimate source of everything he has seen.

čija je svetlost krajnji izvor svega što je on video.

The prisoner returns to the cave to share his discovery,

Zatvorenik se vraća u pećinu da podeli svoje otkriće,

but he is no longer used to the darkness,

ali on više nije naviknut na tamu,

and has a hard time seeing the shadows on the wall.

i teško mu je da razazna senke na zidu.

The other prisoners think the journey has made him stupid and blind,

Drugi zatvorenici smatraju da ga je to putovanje zaglupilo i oslepilo,

and violently resist any attempts to free them.

i žestoko se opiru svakom pokušaju da ih oslobodi.

Plato introduces this passage as an analogy

Platon predstavlja ovaj put kao analogiju

of what it's like to be a philosopher trying to educate the public.

onoga šta znači biti filozof koji pokušava da obrazuje javnost.

Most people are not just comfortable in their ignorance

Mnogim ljudima ne samo da je ugodno u njihovom neznanju

but hostile to anyone who points it out.

već su neprijateljski nastrojeni prema svakom ko im ukaže na to neznanje.

In fact, the real life Socrates was sentenced to death

U stvari, stvarnog Sokrata je vlada Atine

osudila na smrt zato što je ometao društveni poredak,

by the Athenian government for disrupting the social order,

and his student Plato spends much of "The Republic"

i njegov učenik Platon u većem delu „Republike”

disparaging Athenian democracy,

ponižava demokratiju u Atini,

while promoting rule by philosopher kings.

dok promoviše vladavinu kraljeva filozofa.

With the cave parable,

Sa parabolom o pećini,

Plato may be arguing that the masses are too stubborn and ignorant

Platon možda ukazuje na to da su narodne mase previše tvrdoglave i neuke

to govern themselves.

da bi vladale samim sobom.

But the allegory has captured imaginations for 2,400 years

Ali ova alegorija je golicala mašte preko 2400 godina

because it can be read in far more ways.

jer se može posmatrati na mnogo načina.

Importantly, the allegory is connected to the theory of forms,

Još važnije, alegorija je povezana sa teorijom oblika,

developed in Plato's other dialogues,

koja je razvijena u drugim Platonovim dijalozima,

which holds that like the shadows on the wall,

koja govori da poput senki na zidu,

things in the physical world are flawed reflections of ideal forms,

stvari u stvarnom svetu su nesavršeni odrazi idealnih oblika,

such as roundness, or beauty.

kao što je oblina, ili lepota.

In this way, the cave leads to many fundamental questions,

Na ovaj način, pećina otvara mnoga osnovna pitanja,

including the origin of knowledge,

uključujući poreklo znanja,

the problem of representation,

problem prikazivanja,

and the nature of reality itself.

i prirodu same stvarnosti.

For theologians, the ideal forms exist in the mind of a creator.

Za bogoslove, idealni oblici postoje u umu stvaraoca.

For philosophers of language viewing the forms as linguistic concepts,

Za filozofe jezika koji posmatraju oblike kao lingvističke koncepte,

the theory illustrates the problem of grouping concrete things

ova teorija oslikava problem grupisanja konkretnih stvari

under abstract terms.

pod apstraktne termine.

And others still wonder whether we can really know

A drugi se i dalje pitaju da li mi zaista možemo da znamo

that the things outside the cave are any more real than the shadows.

da li su stvari izvan pećine išta stvarnije od senki.

As we go about our lives,

Dok živimo naše živote,

can we be confident in what we think we know?

možemo li biti sigurni u ono šta znamo?

Perhaps one day,

Možda će jednog dana

a glimmer of light may punch a hole in your most basic assumptions.

tračak svetlosti probiti u vaše najosnovnije pretpostavke.

Will you break free to struggle towards the light,

Hoćete li se osloboditi i stremiti ka toj svetlosti,

even if it costs you your friends and family,

čak i da vas to košta vaših prijatelja i porodice,

or stick with comfortable and familiar illusions?

ili ćete ostati uz ležerne i poznate iluzije?

Truth or habit? Light or shadow?

Istina ili navika? Svetlost ili senka?

Hard choices, but if it's any consolation, you're not alone.

Teški izbori, ali ako je za utehu, niste sami.

There are lots of us down here.

Mnogo je nas tu dole.