Philosophy should be liberating!

"In the Allegory of the Cave, Socrates suggests that, without philosophical education, we are all like the prisoners in the cave. What are your thoughts on this? How is philosophy supposed to be liberating? Do you think Socrates is right to be so pessimistic about life without philosophy?"

I am going to have to agree with Socrates that without philosophical education we are like the prisoners from the Allegory of the Cave. Philosophy is liberating because it challenges our minds to think outside of the norm. I believe that depending on the person, a mind can either build something brilliant or destroy it. Philosophy allows us to feel like we as human beings matter in this world. Ignorance of that would take away our opportunities to make something of ourselves. I believe that Socrates was right to be pessimistic about life without philosophy but he could have went about it in a different way. I do admire that he felt so strongly about his beliefs that he was willing to die rather than retract his beliefs and live.