William R. Thomas has published essays on topics such as politics, ethics, and epistemology. He has also spoken about individual rights and Ayn Rand’s philosophy of Objectivism. Ayn Rand is known for being an individualist and an author, writing books such as Atlas Shrugged and the Fountainhead. Rand created a new philosophy in her books called Objectivism. She praised those who lived by their own minds and stand alone against tradition. Rand has developed a “sense of life” that are philosophical convictions needed in everyday life. Rand’s sense of life reflects how we relate to others, your feelings of how things currently are and also, how they should be. Without these philosophical convictions, we wouldn’t be able to put life into words …show more content…
In Plato’s Republic, Plato came up with his own “Allegory of the Cave” that relates to this ideal. Thomas explains that, “To have a clear grasp on one’s own life and context, one needs to be able to sort out the mass of information, claims, and ideas we receive from others; that skill is based in epistemology” (Thomas, p. 3). The Allegory of the Cave in Plato’s Republic, the prisoners cannot move their heads or bodies. They are only shown what people choose to show them and the meanings they have behind that. All the prisoners know is what is being shown to them but they will not know if it is true or not. Suddenly, a prisoner is dragged from the cave and eventually adjusts to the sunlight and sees what is true. Plato says, “At first, it would be shadows that he could easily make out, then he’d move on to the reflections of people and so on in water, and later he’d be able to see the actual things themselves” (Plato p. 174). Just like the sense of life, the prisoner is sorting out his options and beginning to see what is real and what is not. With this action, it would further the prisoner into knowing what to believe and what not to believe based on its …show more content…
Ethics is what determines the good from the evil. People have to learn the difference between the two and now how to carry out these acts. Thomas stated, “To organize our moral views and take the right course in life, we need to avoid being torn apart by contradictory goals and principles.” (Thomas p. 4). Plato produces “The Art of Orientation”. The Art of Orientation is meant to orient the mind with good education such as what’s moral and right and it has to be cultivated. For example, orienting the understanding towards evil would be a parent telling their son to beat up a child. Orienting the understanding towards good would be a parent telling their son to hug and apologize. Plato further explains this by saying, “That’s what education should be, the art of orientation. Educators should devise the simplest and most effective methods of turning minds around. It shouldn’t be the art of implanting sight in the organ, but should proceed on the understanding that the organ already has the capacity, but is improperly aligned and isn’t facing the right way.” (Plato p. 176). If Rand states that people have to learn the difference between evil and good and also practice the actions that are equivalent, Plato would agree that the mind would have to be oriented in that way. If you initially learn ethics to help determine what is good and evil, you will continue to practice these concepts. As the