Plato and Enlightenment!

Today in IS 101 we discussed what Plato meant by enlightenment in his Allegory of the Cave. Many opinions were expressed: I will repeat that again, many opinions were expressed. I enjoy listening to each person's opinions, and I feel that listening to what other people have to say makes me more enlightened, more knowledgeable. Plato felt that our rulers should be more enlightened than the rest of the population, an opinion that he wrote about in The Republic. Plato wanted to have philosophical rulers because they were not corrupted by power, all they wanted was to gain knowledge and ask questions. I agree with Plato that our rulers should be the most enlightened, but that does not always portray what kind of leader they will turn out to be. Just because someone is enlightened does not mean they are very ethical or have the guts to stand up for what they feel is right or wrong. Enlightenment is a crucial step in obtaining power, but it's just one of the many factors that make a great ruler. Some of those factors that make a great leader may include: wisdom, knowledge, courage, honesty, confidence, understanding, and mercy. There are many more attributes that I could list off that would define a great ruler, but there are so many different ideas that people have about the ideal ruler that there are too many to list. Enlightenment is a characteristic to strive for and can benefit not only yourself, but everyone around you. The goal should be to pass enlightenment to as many people as you can as to make this world a better place to live.