The Simile of the Cave

The allegory of the cave is one of Plato's most renowned pieces of work. It was meant to bring to light the knowledge that all humans are averse to change and that we, as human beings, are comfortable living a known, shallow life. He was trying to symbolise a man's tendency to walk the known path of life rather than lead a more challenging life in which he would be more likely to find the "real truth".

The hypothetical cave is set up in a way so that it's inhabitants are constantly looking at the shadows, cast from the fire, that is situated behind them. They have no freedom to move or alter what they see, leading them to believe that these shadows, this environment is "the real truth". However, somewhere down the line, one prisoner begins to doubt this mundane existence. In response to his inquisitiveness he breaks the chains that bind him and escapes the cave to venture into the unknown (to him) world. 

To begin with, he struggles to adapt to the newfound sunlight, which his eyes are untrained to deal with. But once he got used to the foreign elements that halted his progress, he began his search for the truth. For a new reality. During his journey, his thoughts are cast back to the prisoners whom he shared the dark cave with. He decided to return to the cave and share his discovery with all his former companions. 

However, he was not met with a great deal of astonishment, neither did he intrigue his old friends. Instead, when he told them that the cave was in fact an 'imaginary' reality, he was met with both disbelief and disregard. The now philosopher was deemed a pariah, one who should be cast from the cave in order to preserve its belief system. The "cavelings" had become used to and dependant on the morals and views of their predecessors.

This short, thought-provoking anecdote emphasises the blind following of false truths. People are content to live by the rules and ideas of the people around and 'above' them. Happy to remain in their comfortable bubble of make-believe, rather than lead a more challenging life. One that would eventually lead to greater truths. 

On a more positive note, Plato's story is predominantly centred around the man who questioned the reality in which he had been placed. Plato used this character to explain how once in a while somebody, a philosopher, will question the boundaries of their existence. He will wonder why things are as they are and determine for himself how things should be. 

The Simulacrum

French sociologist Jean Baudrillard believed, and concluded, that the definite boundary between art and reality has completely diminished. The reason for this; both have collapsed into the universal simulacrum.
The simulacrum comes into existence when the distinction between a representation and the real thing breaks down. Moving from a reflection of the basic reality, through to an image that bears no relation to any reality whatsoever.
An artist named Henri Jacobs did a piece, called "Surface Research", which, emphasises on the effect and practice of the Simulacrum.

For you visual types, here is just one of his representations.

Self portrait iconoclasm by stabbing

To see other examples of this project just clink on the link below.
http://surfaceresearch-hj.blogspot.co.uk/2011_03_01_archive.html

The Divine Irreference of Images

To make it easier i have split Baudrillard's conclusions of the simulacrum and simulation into four different examples.

Illness - There are to sides to simulation; to dissimulate is to pretend not to have what one truly has. To simulate is, as expected, to do the exact opposite. To pretend to have what one does not actually have. Simulation, however, is not as simple as just pretending.

"Whoever fakes an illness can simply stay in bed and make everyone believe he is ill. Whoever simulates illness produces in himself some of the symptoms" (Littre).

To pretend is to hold on to a sense of reality, but simulation threatens the difference between the real and the imaginary. (The placebo effect is a good example of this in everyday life). Baudrillard believes that this simulation of symptoms means medicine loses its meaning because it only treats "real" illnesses  and illness can no longer be taken as a fact of nature.

Psychoanalysis - Psychiatrists say they can not be deceived by simulation, for there is a particular order in the succession of symptoms of which the simulator is ignorant. But the debate remains, what can medicine do with the duplication of illness in a discourse that is no longer either true or false?

Military - Traditionally, the military punishes any simulators, according to a standard principle of identification. They make no distinction, and no attempt to distinguish, between a good simulator and a "real" homosexual or "madman". With a naive attitude of, "if he is this good at acting crazy, it's because he is". By submerging the principle of truth they regard, in this sense, all crazy people to be simulating or visa-versa.

Religion - All of this finally returns to religion and the simulacrum of divinity.

"I forbade that there be any simulacra in the temples because divinity that animates nature can never be represented".

In essence, it can be represented, but with every multiplication of an icon in simulacra, does it not lose its meaning? Iconoclasts feared this exact outcome. The power and divinity of "God" being portrayed in the visible, machinery of icons. They could live with the idea of distorted truth. But their despair came from the idea that the image did not conceal anything at all. Is God not just his own Simulacrum?
Western faith believed a sign could refer to a depth of meaning, that it can be exchanged for meaning - the best example being God himself. If god can be reduced to a series of signs that constitute faith then the whole system become weightless. A gigantic simulacrum!


Living in the wake of the withering signified

"The public does not want to know what Napoleon III said to William of Prussia. It wants to know whether he wore beige trousers and whether he smoked a cigar."
         -  Pope John Paul I

For a month in early spring the Photographer's Gallery near Leicester Square was host to The Bill Brandt room. The press handout described it as a 'walk in magazine': a three dimensional version of The Face.