“Captive,” Langer, Pinker, Pipher

Response prompts:
Consider the article “If You Don’t Know You Are Held Captive, Does It Matter?” as well as the video you watched on Plato’s Allegory of the Cave. What conclusions do you draw from the allegory? If people have developed a way of understanding the world that makes them comfortable, does it matter if it’s false? Is there some higher moral duty to expose them to the truth regardless of their own preferences?
Based on Langer’s thesis, what is the difference between a sign and a symbol (briefly define each) and why is the distinction between the two so important? What examples of signs and symbols does Langer provide? What examples of signs and symbols can you provide?
What do you think Pinker means when he says, “Such hypocrisy is a human universal”? Do you believe that this hypocrisy is necessary? What would need to change for us to speak the “plain truth” to each other? What is “indirect speech” and why do you think people resort to it? Why is it not surprising that indirect speech has a long history in the arenas of politics and diplomacy?
Pipher believes that “all writing is designed to change the world.” What examples does she provide to support her claim? If you were writing an argument along similar lines, what examples of change writing would you choose to support this claim and why? What are the key difference between change writing and propaganda, according to Pipher? What accounts for the power of each of these types of writing? Which type do you think is more powerful in the long run?

Some of you may be familiar with Plato’s “Allegory of the Cave.”  Others may never have heard of it. (If you don’t know who Plato is, check out the Wikipedia entry on him (Links to an external site.).) Please watch this quick video – the first one (TED-Ed) is required, the second one completely optional – to get a perspective on the philosophies behind this course. You will be asked to refer back to this material more than once this semester, particularly in the upcoming response set.

This TED-Ed video is the only one you’re required to view

Videos: Allegory of the Cave
https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=1&v=1RWOpQXTltA&feature=emb_logo

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=2&v=lVDaSgyi3xE&feature=emb_logo

NPR article: “If You Don’t Know You Are Held Captive, Does It Matter?”
https://www.npr.org/sections/13.7/2015/06/10/413342960/if-you-don-t-know-you-are-captive-does-it-matter?

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