A Reflection on 'In Plato's Cave'

In “In Plato’s Cave,” Susan Sontag writes about her point of view on how photography changes our ways of viewing the world and how we come to understand reality. Sontag connects photography to Plato’s cave by explaining how photographs are like shadows on the wall. While they may appear to be real, they are only copies of something real. Sontag states that because we rely so much on photographs the images are quick to be accepted instead of questioning how things are really happening and what is happening beyond the image itself.

One of Sontag’s main ideas is that a photo is a way of controlling reality. When someone decides to take a photo, they get to choose what the viewer of the photo is allowed to see and what is left out. For this reason, one may find that a photo is not entirely truthful, whether it looks like it is or not. A moment from one’s life is captured with a photo but it will never reveal the full story behind it. Someone may see a photo and assume that they know exactly what is going on, without asking questions, ignoring the fact that they are still missing plenty of context behind it. This made me think of how when we scroll through images online typically we assume the whole story from one moment without actually knowing the entire story and what it took to get there. This also connects to me when I am taking photos, I choose what is important enough to be photographed. I take photos of moments that I see as being visually appealing, and meaningful instead of moments that I find to be chaotic and overwhelming. In a way, I am representing my life as being controlled or peaceful, even though it is not always that way. This just shows to us how we can manipulate the life we want to show.

Sontag also writes about how photography can make people feel disconnected from real experiences. People do not truly live the present time instead they are more focused on taking it in to be able to photograph it. Photographing something and saving it for memories becomes more important than being present in the situation we are in. For example, oftentimes people are focused on recording a concert and taking images rather than experiencing its full potential. This connects to the idea that photos replace real memories. Instead of remembering how something felt during the moment, we remember how it looked in a picture. When I think about how I would present my perspective on the world in the present in terms of photography/image making, I think I would focus on quiet and everyday moments in the world. The world today seems chaotic, fast-paced, and connected at all hours of the day on the internet. If I were to present these moments in photographs/images, I think they might say a lot about feelings of disconnection that people experience even when they’re near each other physically.

Overall, "In Plato's Cave" really changed my perspective on photography. I now know that photographs are never neutral and have influenced our view of the world and our responses to it. Sontag’s book teaches people to be thoughtful viewers and not passive viewers of photographs. Moving forward, I would like to use photography in a more intentional manner and be more aware of what I capture and what I don’t capture, as well as the power of photographs to depict the emotional state of our world.