One of the main themes that is noticeable in the Matrix is "being as such". When considering the Matrix, Neo lives in complete delusion, a prisoner of artificial intelligence with no real control or perception of reality. He thinks he lives in the city, enjoying the heat when in reality his brain is in a body monitored and controlled by machines thousands of years later than he thinks he exists. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay The plot can be directly related to the old philosophical topic "The brain in a vat". This argument simply states that if scientists were to put a brain in a jar and add stimulating chemicals that make the brain function normally, the brain and its thoughts would exist and thrive as if they were in a body. The brain might have experiences, relationships, and form normal life scenarios in a body that spark the question: What is reality? The brain will be the brain (being as such), it is no more complex than simple “being”. I relate this concept to the phrase “believing not seeing” since what we perceive and believe is all that exists is not always the true reality of what actually exists. In Plato's Allegory of the Cave, this concept is addressed in a unique way. The men who have been imprisoned in the cave do not know the world outside the cave. They know they exist and can only see what is in front of them. As the "shadows" pass by them on their travels from behind and in front of them, they hear their voices but cannot differentiate them or even understand that the voices are actually coming from behind them as well, rather than just from the visible figures. They are unable to imagine or recognize what they don't know exists because they are conditioned to focus on the present: “And suppose their prison had an echo from the wall in front of them? When one of the people passing behind them spoke, they could only assume that the sound was coming from the shadow passing in front of their eyes. Without a doubt” (Plato 9) He also mentions the fire burning behind them, which emits the light to which prisoners are naturally conditioned. They have never seen a brighter light before and do not even consider its existence. It would be difficult to recognize that their perception of the reality of life is so clouded if someone told them. Plato demonstrates this when he states that if prisoners were freed from their chains and forced to turn around and experience the intensity of true firelight, it would cause them pain and perplexity and dilute their understanding of what is real; even if it is right before their eyes: "We would therefore have to get used to it before being able to see the things of that superior world" (Plato). easier for him to distinguish. Another metaphysical theme in both The Matrix and Plato's Allegory of the Cave is wisdom. Wisdom is built through knowledge and experience. “I remember that I am here not by the path that lies before me but by the path that lies behind me” (Morpheus in The Matrix Reloaded) When Neo sees the world for the first time in the Matrix it is difficult for him to believe as well as perceive. Everything he thought was reality was no longer relevant to current events. He uses his experience and the knowledge he has gained from it to awaken the rest of humanity from the dream he perceives as their reality. This theme in the matrix forms a direct analogy to the wisdom shown in Plato's allegory of the Cave when the prisoner is released from the cave and is blinded by the sun when he leaves. The light is so strong and more.
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