Giuseppe and I held tightly to Stepfather’s hands, while Liberta and Helvetia clung to Mother. Passengers all about us were crowding against the rail. Jabbered conversations, sharp cries, laughs and cheers – a steadily rising din filled the air. Mothers and fathers lifted up babies so that they too could see, off to the left, the Statue of Liberty. —Edward Corsi, Italian Immigrant,
from Immigrant Kids,
Russell Freedman

Read the passage. Paraphrase the central idea.

What is the central idea of the "allegory of the cave"? a. most men live chained to the wall of a cave all of their lives, facing a blank wall, and trying to guess the nature of objects reflected by a fire. b. a philosopher is like a prisoner freed from the cave that comes to understand that the shadows are not reality, rather he understands reality by his experience. c. men who allow their experience to be shaped by perceptions and shadows do not know a better life. d. a philosopher must return to share the news of enlightenment with others who will not necessarily accept his good news. part