Research Article

Patient Parables: Philosophical Allegories as Frameworks for Healing Relationships in Contemporary Medicine

Authors: Julian Ungar-Sargon.

DOI: 10.33425/2771-5906.1039

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Abstract

This article examines the application of classical philosophical allegories—specifically Rabbi Moshe Chaim Luzzatto's maze metaphor from Mesillat Yesharim and Plato's Allegory of the Cave from The Republic—as hermeneutic frameworks for understanding contemporary physician-patient relationships. Drawing on recent developments in medical humanities and hermeneutic approaches to clinical practice, we argue that these "patient parables" offer profound insights into the epistemological and relational dimensions of healing. The analysis incorporates Actor-Network Theory and the concept of "patient as sacred text" to propose a covenantal rather than contractual model of therapeutic relationships. Through systematic comparison of rationalist and revelatory approaches to truth and guidance, this article demonstrates how classical philosophical metaphors can illuminate the temporal, interpretive, and ethical foundations of medical practice.

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