There are many historical allegories with the moral of not making assumptions about the whole when one only has knowledge of a part. From Plato’s the Cave to the Indian proverb about the six blind men and the elephant, it’s a theme spanning hundreds and thousands of years.
Contrast this with the evolving meaning of truth as a concept. It’s origins lie in belief – the acceptance of something without proof. Yet it’s modern use is more akin to a synonym for fact – something proven or evidenced.
Now compare the modern worker to Plato’s cave dweller. Chained to their computer day in and day out everything passing in front of them becomes fact. Belief becomes truth, and perception is limited to reinforcing that believed truth.
Here’s some home truths about truth. It’s a socially constructed concept. Labelling something as “true” describes nothing of that thing. Truth can change. There are many truths.
It goes against human nature to a certain extent to theorise what may lie outside our comfort zone. Often these attempts can be widely off the mark. But unless we emerge, blinking from our caves, we’ll remain forever in the dark, ignorant of the real nature of the truth.
This notion attributed to Plato sums up that danger perfectly:
“There is a state of mind that is a poor or second-best way of getting to know about an in changing reality”