The Matrix raises the question of “How do you know whether the things you perceive are real or just an illusion.”. This position is called skepticism, the genuine knowledge in such matters that is unattainable. The Matrix also exploits the fears of Descartes theory “What if all of life is actually a dream”? How do we know that we are awake, rather than merely dreaming? How do we know that our thoughts are not being manipulated, and that our perceptions of reality are accurate? The film involves manipulation of the mind and soul where human actions have no real consequences in a world that exists independently of their own mind. Some dreams are so vivid and indeed lucid that one can never be sure that what you are experiencing under these conditions is dream or reality. And of course this is the problem – there does not appear to be any sure test to distinguish vivid/lucid dreaming from perceptions received in the real world under normal circumstances. On the other hand we generally have no problem in making the distinction because our dreams have that quality – that dream quality which is sufficiently remote from our waking experience to assure us that what is dreamt is not real. It takes little imagination to conceive of the next possible step of sensory and perceptual manipulation of the kind that lies at the core of The Matrix narrative. If neurological research continues with its present rate of success, then it should be possible to probe not only the regions of the brain but also the deeper regions of the lower animal brain . Such comprehensive probing would throw into doubt all of our perceptions. Maybe my mind is at this moment being manipulated so that I think comprehensive mind control is only a future possibility when in fact it is a present reality, and this is not the end of the 21st century but the middle of the 25th. These speculations throw up what philosophers call the problem of knowledge which might be rephrased as how do we know anything for sure? --Hippy
Posted on: Sat, 15 Mar 2014 05:33:48 +0000
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