Plato Descartes and the Matrix

Plato, Descartes, And the Matrix

The Matrix can be compared with Plato and Descartes. While that might seem like a very odd comparison, there are many similarities. In each scenario, there is the concept of reality and how to determine what is real and what is not. While it may seem as though it is easy to tell if something is real or not real, the truth is more complicated. People can have experiences in their lives that feel completely unreal to them, and they can have dreams that feel so real that they have trouble understanding why they have ended once they wake up. Naturally, that is a serious concern for people who are attempting to really understand the truth. There are some differences in the three works, though, because Plato was fixated more on people seeing something while they were awake and not being exposed to anything else. Descartes was focused mainly on dreams, and the Matrix was dealing with a computer that everyone was hooked into that provided them with "reality."

It is technically not possible to prove that the world in which we live is the "real world" and that dreams or other creations are the party of life that is not real. Of course, there are arguments about this issue and there are opinions to the contrary. Since technology can provide a person with so many different experiences and the human mind can do the same, it is conceivable that what people are experiencing and what they find real to them is not actually the truth regarding what occurs in life. People could be dreaming, living in a cave like Plato where they are not aware that there is more to life, or trapped in a matrix like the one in the movie. There is more to this issue, as well, because it is not just about whether these things are taking place, but about whether a person who was actually in that situation would want to know the truth about his or her "life."

In the Matrix, Cypher betrays Morpheus and implies that is it much better to live in the Matrix instead of being exposed to the truth, which would be a harsh and jolting reality. The Matrix is safe, and there is no reason why people need to know that they are not really living the lives they think they are living. What harm is it doing, and what good can it do to show these people the truth? The idea that ignorance is bliss is a popular theme throughout the Matrix, but others believe that it is much more important to know one's reality - even if that reality is not what one expected. Overall, it is better to know reality because that is the only way that truly informed and honest decisions can be made. Otherwise, remaining in ignorance is just living a lie. The longer that goes on, the more complicated and painful it will be when the truth is finally discovered. It is possible that the truth will never be known, in which case one could argue that there was no harm, but the person who "lived" that way would still be denied the right to actually live his or her life in the way he or she saw fit based on honest and true data about relationships and surroundings.