The "Allegory of the Cave" provides an insightful commentary on the many aspects of knowledge and how it is acquired. The first thing that stood out to me is that it explores the idea of "ignorance is bliss", and seems to present this as negative. To me, the "Allegory" is analogous to how many people today tend to consume information through media. Often, we choose certain news and media sources based on our opinions and ideas about the world; this can cause us to live in a bubble of information that we agree with. Of course, that is a comfortable place to be, and it is easy to stay in that place. I saw this happening to many people around me and myself throughout the recent election cycle. When I watch the news and look at social media, I see how much of the media is influenced by one view point. Just as in the "Allegory" Plato describes a scene in which people are only able to see an artificial image of the real world through the shadows on the cave walls. This media bubble that we place ourselves in causes us to only see the world in one way, and therefore causes us to miss important pieces of information that may not easy to hear. It can be difficult to open up to information that does not align with your world view, but I think there is value in gathering as much knowledge as we can. Even if you hold to your opinions firmly, you will at least have a vision of the bigger picture and more wisdom in forming your opinions.
This article gives insight into and offers evidence of the existence of a media bubble or as the author calls it "the filter bubble":
https://www.technologyreview.com/s/522111/how-to-burst-the-filter-bubble-that-protects-us-from-opposing-views/
Image retrieved from: http://berto-meister.blogspot.com/2008/07/platos-allegory-of-cave.html
