HPHL011 Philosophy Assignment 1: Exploring Freedom, Love, and Truth

This philosophy assignment, submitted by Tumelo Ragolane, addresses several key philosophical questions. It begins by exploring the concept of free will, referencing biblical verses to argue that while humans have the capacity to act, external factors influence their decisions, suggesting humanity cannot claim absolute freedom. The assignment then applies Plato's Allegory of the Cave to the South African governance, interpreting the cave as superficial reality and ignorance, the chains as societal constraints, and the freed prisoner as those who have awakened to a higher truth. The author formulates a personal definition of philosophy as a tool for broader thinking and questioning existence. The assignment also discusses the possibility of finite beings loving infinitely, and the relevance of philosophy in daily life, highlighting its role in critical thinking and problem-solving. Finally, it differentiates between sophistry and philosophy, contrasting the manipulative nature of sophistry with the pursuit of truth in philosophy. The assignment concludes with a list of references used.

NAME AND SURNAME: TUMELO RAGOLANE
STUDENT NUMBER: 202152619
MODULE: INTRODUCTION TO PHILOSOPHY
MODULE CODE: HPHL011
LECTURER: MS BOITUMELO MOKALAPA
FACULTY: HUMANITIES
SCHOOL: SOCIAL SCIENCES
DUE DATE: 15 MAY 2021
TOPIC: PHILOSOPHY ASSIGNMENT 1

TABLE OF CONTENTS
CONTENT PAGE
1. Can humanity claim to be free? 1
2. Explain the Allegory of The Cave with
the South African governance. 2
3. Formulate your Philosophy definition
and explain it. 3
4. Is it possible for a finite being to love
infinitely? 3
5. How is Philosophy relevant in our
everyday life? 3
6. Differentiate Sophistry from
Philosophy.
7. List of references
4
5

1. CAN HUMANITY CLAIM TO BE FREE?
Freewill is defined as the ability or capacity for human beings to act or change without
constraint. Something is “free” if it can change easily and is not constrained in its present
state.
To support my statement, I will be referring to the King James Version and New Living
Translation Holy Bible(s).
1. Galatians 5:13
“You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to
indulge the flesh; rather, serve one another humbly in love.”
2. Joshua 24:15
“And if it seems evil unto you to serve the Lord, choose you this day whom ye will
serve, whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the
flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my
house, we will serve the Lord.”
3. John 7:17
“If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or
whether I speak of myself.”
4. Galatians 5:16-17
“This I say then, walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. For the
flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the other: so that ye cannot do
the things that ye would.”
These verses state that we as humans have freewill; the ability to act or change (granted by
Him), however, the Spirit and God Himself are there to lead us in the right direction. In other
words, in as much as we’d like to believe that we are free, in reality everything around us, such
as the people we spend time with, the things we watch and listen to, believe in and so on all
influence the final decision that we make.
Therefore, humanity cannot claim to be free because we exist not to fulfill our own will but
God’s. He alone sets and knows our purpose until such a time when He allows us to discover
and act upon it. The lusts of the flesh that eventually lead us to sin distract us from being one
with the spirit and initially being truly free. Freewill then becomes a mere figment of our
imagination: we’d like to believe or think that we are free without understanding the true
essence of freedom or freewill which is separating the FLESH from the SPIRIT. Once we as
humans learn to let go of our earthly desires and accept that they are momentary, and start
being one with the spirit, only then can we be and claim to be truly free.
1

2. EXPLAIN THE ALLEGORY OF THE CAVE WITH THE SOUTH AFRICAN
GOVERNANCE.
Summary:
Plato’s “Allegory of The Cave” is a concept that was created by the philosopher to reflect
on the nature of belief vs. knowledge. The Allegory states that there are prisoners who
have been chained together in a cave since childhood. There is a fire behind the chained
prisoners and between them and the fire are people who continuously walk to and fro
holding different objects and puppets. These objects and puppets cast shadows on the
other side of the wall which the prisoners watch every single day. The prisoners have
watched them all their lives and believe that they are real. Plato suggests that should
one of the prisoners be freed to go out of the cave, he would be blinded by the sunlight
and realize that the outside world is a far better place than inside when he returns.
Symbolism and relation with the South African governance:
Looking at the South African governance, the cave in the Allegory symbolizes the
superficial physical reality and ignorance: the residents of the country live life daily
accepting what they can see in front of them.
-The darkness in the cave symbolizes the ignorance because the residents choose to
see and believe in the shadows, which are lies than the truth and have been
manipulated to believe that what they are shown is the truth all their lives.
-The chains that hold the prisoners symbolize residents being trapped in ignorance of all
the facades, empty promises and corruption that takes place within the government.
-The shadows in the cave symbolize the superficial truth, the illusion that residents as
prisoners of the governance are shown and made to believe.
-The freed prisoner symbolizes those that are ‘woke’ and have taken off the blindfold of
manipulation and can tell that there is more to it all than what meets the eye and that
there is a higher truth.
-The light outside of the cave symbolizes freedom of the mind and ultimately the soul. It
symbolizes wisdom, enlightenment to the darkness that they had been accustomed to all
their lives.
-The prisoner returning shows that those who were able to wake up from the ‘daze’ and
see through the ongoing lies and became aware of the higher truth must not remain on
the outside but return to share the new knowledge and revelation, enlighten others and
help to free them from mental captivity.
2

3. FORMULATE YOUR PHILOSOPHY DEFINITION AND DEFINE IT.
“Philosophy has no universally accepted definition.”
Philosophy is the stepping-stone to a broader mind and somewhat unlimited knowledge.
It helps us to think deeper into the diverse set of things we learn on a daily basis, access
them and question them. Philosophy even allows us to go as far as questioning
existence itself, like how it all began. It broadens our way of thinking, leaving no room for
intellectual limitation and proves to us that we are meant for much more than who and
what we are now. It allows us to explore ourselves in our truest form without destructive
glitches.
4. IS IT POSSIBLE FOR A FINITE BEING TO LOVE INFINITELY?
The saying “Love is finite.” Is a metaphor, which means that most people never reach
the limit of their capacity for love. E.g., a parent with multiple children (say five) may
think that s/he cannot possibly have any more love within him/her, then discover that
s/he is perfectly capable of loving a sixth child.
It is common in casual speech to use the word “infinite” to mean “very large”. In this
sense, “infinite” means “more than enough to meet any conceivable need.” One can
even say they have an “infinite” amount of love for their partner, even though they are
both mortal (finite) because they believe that there is no chance the love will ever run
out during their lifetimes. Therefore, yes, it is possible for an infinite being to love
infinitely because the notion of infinity does not imply that all sets are finite. For a finite
being to love infinitely one must reach a point of first loving oneself beyond the abstract
and also fall in love with love itself.
5. HOW IS PHILOSOPHY RELEVANT TO OUR EVERDAY LIFE?
-Philosophy is the touch base of critical thinking. “Philosophy is not obsolete. Philosophy
brings the important questions the table and works towards an answer. It is the
foundation of all knowledge.” (Alexander Leivesley; Huffington Post)
-Philosophy helps us to solve our problems: real of abstract. It helps us to make
calculated decisions by developing our thinking. It also helps us to form a crucial skill set
that can be applied in both professional and personal context. E.g. putting together a
convincing argument for or against given proposals, or, decide which problems are
crucial in daily life. Without philosophy, we would fail to separate facts from opinion.
3

6. DIFFERENTIATE SOPHISTRY FROM PHILOSOPHY.
Sophistry is the ‘art’ of manipulation. Sophists believe that morality is relative. They
believe that there are no moral facts but mere beliefs that people in a society will agree
with. Sophists use persuasive arguments, not as experts, but rather to manipulate other
people into believing that their cases are watertight.
Philosophy is the “love of wisdom” (Greek). It refers to those who want to know and learn
the truth and evolve in knowledge rather than to dodge it and hold onto false beliefs.
Philosophers use rational debates to attain knowledge.
4

7. LIST OF REFERENCES
1. Article source
Education International News
Reasons Why Philosophy Is As Relevant As Ever
Joanna Hughes
November 16. 2018
2. Book source
Philosophy for Dummies
UK Edition
Martin Cohen
3. Book source
Plato’s Allegory of the cave
Summary and explanation
4. Book source
Ethical Realism
The Difference Between Sophistry & Philosophy
JW GRAY. 2012
5. Internet source
Texas Talking Book Program
Freewill
Tsl.texas.gov
5