Comparison of Meditation by Marcus Aurelius and the Allegory of the Cave by Plato

This essay compares and contrasts the concepts of meditation by Marcus Aurelius and the Allegory of the Cave by Plato, exploring their contributions to philosophy and human understanding. It discusses the significance of reasoning and logical thinking in gaining knowledge and achieving happiness. The essay also highlights the similarities and differences in the approaches of these two philosophers.

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BIG IDEAS
Philosophy is a complicated and complex field of study, and for a year several
philosophers have presented the world with greatest philosophies. Their contribution help in
searching the meaning of concepts and phenomenon of lives, it helps in finding greater
understanding and answers of the questions that surround human existence, purpose and the
entire universe. Two of the philosophers of ancient times are Marcus Aurelius and Plato
(Sharples 80). The essay will aim to compare and contrast meditation by Marcus Aurelius and
the Allegory of the cave by Plato. Both the philosophers have presented their ideas that push
boundaries and changed the perception of human lives and their surrounding.
According to Xu et al (800), written by the Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius, Meditation
is one of the powerful documents that have ever been made. Meditation is a collection of 12
books that introduces the reader to Stoic philosophy, self-discipline, the concept of logic and
with the faith that the world runs is a good one. The book was not meant to publish as the author
called it ‘Witting To Myself”. The book involves private thoughts of one of the powerful man
who writes the ways to make right on the responsibilities and obligations of his positions.
Marcus was a Roman emperor and a man who held the highest and most powerful station in the
world. However, with all the privileges as an emperor, he was faced with a difficult life. For the

reasons, it was written only for his own personal clarity and not a public benefit. Although
unorganised, the book illuminates specific ideas indicating its importance to the author. These
are ideas the main aspects of the book that should be understood and incorporated into the way
human live. According to Adams (410), the first book consists of Marcus thanking people who
had a positive influence on him and focused on the people who instilled in him traits
characteristic of an excellent stoic. The traits involve placing reason above all and not material
things. In the second book, Marcus reminds that each day people will meet some other terrible
people; however, to a certain extent, it is the fault of both the sides as one gets angry on the
other. The book three talks about becoming mindful of little things such as the texture of figs,
olives, a loaf of bread and other little things about life instead of talking about other people. The
book four tells that an individual can always find solitude in their own minds. It is essential to
find solitude for human minds are serene and it can find peace and happiness. Book five tells the
importance of getting up each morning and doing good work. Human should be able to act
naturally and contribute to society. Book five is about disavowing revenge and avoiding
imitating injury. In the book sixth Marcus advocates tolerance and patience. It is followed by the
next books nine, ten and eleven stating that disconnection with humanity is similar to cutting
limbs. He states that one should be moderate, sincere and honest (MARCUS 14).
According to Andersen (98) The allegory of the cave is a story of three prisoners who
have never seen the world. The theory illustrated by Plato in the story is about the significance of
reasoning and logical thinking. As per Plato, knowledge should be gained through exploration
and reasonable thinking. Any knowledge that is gained by mere sense is nothing more than
opinion and they are not real knowledge. Through the allegory of the cave, Plato presents the
way people can have an opinion and not real knowledge. In the story, three prisoners were in a

cave tied in a way that gives them only the view of the stonewall in front of them. It was only
through the shadows they would get insights of the outer world. The three prisoners would play
guessing games looking at those shadows and trying to identify it. The world outside the cave
was perceived by the students in their own way. One among them managed to escape from the
prison. He found the world in an entirely different form than the way they had imagined or
guessed. His perception of the world in the cave and their guessing game began to seem
meaningless to him. According to Croskerry (41) the escaped prisoner’s is intellectual journey
began with every aspect he explored in the world. It was then he realised the knowledge of the
world he had made with his sensory knowledge was the only opinion and not real. When he
came back and informed the other prisoners about reality, they denied believing him. They even
threaten to kill him if he tries to change their perception and set them free.
According to Lahav, Both the works of the great philosophers are aimed at creating the
world a better place. The common feature of both the philosopher’s thinking was that it was
focused on the significance of reasons. Marcus Aurelius was a Roman emperor and considered
as one of the most significant stoic philosophers. Since the book was his private thought about
ensuring his position is utilised in a good way, the thought is uninterrupted with external
thoughts. Meditation is a book consisting of actionable advice. The teachings involved in the
book are meant to be practised as well as used in order to have a just living. According to
Marcus, life is full of good and bad things however it is in mind’s control and should be carried
out in the same way. Marcus discusses important aspects of life towards leading a better life.
However, although he focused on reasoning, he also believed that his logic cannot and does not
always make appropriate meaning of everything. Life is certainly to enjoy and not complain and
lastly the pain that one suffers is created by them. Plato, on the other hand, focuses on reasoning

and logic. As a human, people often tend to believe things that are not real and only imagined or
guessed. Through the story, Plato manifested the importance of the reasoning. Humans think that
they understand the world by their senses, their look and senses the world and make the
assumption about the world. However, what is done by a human is only forming perception by
perceiving shadows of the true forms of the things that make the world. According to Avgousti
(10), the prisoners are the reflections of a human being who tend to follow the same procedure of
living life. People tend to make decisions and believe opinions rather than reality. The
philosophy of both the thinker is similar in the way they both give insights to the way towards
happiness. Both agree that happiness cannot be found in the material thing. However the process
and thinking of the two thinkers are different, while one writes it for self, the other writes for
public benefit. Their method of contribution is different. Meditation is a book that gives the way
one can develop an entire personality. A person can develop traits that would help him become
happy in life.
As discussed above, for years the philosophies of great thinkers have been used in order
to find knowledge about human life. According to Plato, knowledge can be gained only through
the reasoning and not by knowledge gained by senses. According to Marcus, a person can be
happy by few processes involving being grateful, noticing the good things of life, avoiding the
urge for revenge, thanking people that spread positivity and many more. The philosophers have
presented the ways human life can make be better with concepts such as freedom, knowledge,
construct knowledge and related.

Work cited:
Adams, Marcus P. "The wax and the mechanical mind: Reexamining Hobbes's objections to
Descartes's Meditations." British Journal for the History of Philosophy 22.3 (2014): 403-
424.
Andersen, Nathan. Shadow Philosophy: Plato’s Cave and Cinema. Routledge, 2014. 98
Avgousti, Andreas. "An overlooked form of demotic power: Reputation in Plato's
Republic." History of Political Thought39.1 (2018): 1-15.
Croskerry, Pat, et al. Diagnosis: Interpreting the shadows. CRC Press, 2017. 40-42.
Lahav, Ran. "chapter two the philosophical gardener: a new paradigm for philosophical
practice." new frontiers in philosophical practice (2018): 34.
MARCUS. AURELIUS. MEDITATIONS. ARCTURUS Publishing Limited, 2017. 1-16
Sharples, Robert W. Stoics, Epicureans and Sceptics: an introduction to Hellenistic philosophy.
Routledge, 2014. 79-80.
Xu, Wei, et al. "The mediating effect of self-acceptance in the relationship between mindfulness
and peace of mind." Mindfulness 6.4 (2015): 797-802.