Today I am writing about “The Matrix” which as it turns out I liked a lot more than “Her”.
The movie really spoke to me with two themes—the big one being what is reality? And the second theme was—what does it mean to be free?
The first question shouldn’t be a surprising one since it seems to be something that is asked during the majority of the film. But in the context of the discussions we’ve been having in class it really made me think about the spaces that some claim to be illegitimate realities such as different blogging platforms or other places where you can create avatars or reconstruct your identity. The scene with the man (Cypher?) who wanted to forget “reality” and go back to living in the Matrix gave me the impression that what was that his reality or the reality he chose was the Matrix.
Can we do that as well then? Certain online platforms provide a type of anonymity which allows the user to construct their true or more ideal self, sometimes entire worlds can be created (kind of reminds me of books) so is it possible that becomes reality itself or at least a form of it? If not, then why and how can we refer to virtual reality as a legitimate reality? In class it seemed that the main concern was consent or the ability to choose.
And the second theme that I mentioned I think comes from my new found fascination with Artificial Intelligence. As suggested in Turkle’s book and in the film “Her” there is the implication that humans want their robots and AI to resemble and become as human as possible. At first I thought that the notion might be an egotistical thing (and it may well be since I have yet to interview a completely sentient AI) but the idea that Agent Smith and in some ways Samantha both strive for some sort of humanness or “human possession” is absolutely fascinating. Could it be that is the major flaw in a being created by humans? Or is it that this physical reality is the only reality and no matter what the only way to be free?
I think I just dragged myself in circles but I found that film left me with lots of questions (and not the logistical ones) but I think the biggest one for me is:
Would I have taken the blue pill or the red one?
And?! Blue or red?
Your end note of “Also, I think I’ve decided that I wouldn’t have taken either because I try not to take stuff from strangers and I think the Matrix would have programmed me with that basic survival skill” had me cracking up. Good point! I also had trouble with the concept of what it means to be free. I personally believe we need the physical reality of the world to be completely free, or at the very least be like Cypher and willingly know and choose the alternate reality. I’m a pretty big believer on “knowledge is power” and I think people can choose to do whatever they’d like with that power. Maybe this choice is what makes us free? I’m not sure, but it definitely hurts my brain to think about.
The first part of your post discusses issues that I have been thinking about as well. Current technology does provide us with an opportunity to shape and alter our identities. This makes me wonder if we create an alternative version of ourselves or just an altered version of ourselves. I feel like we have discussed this in class but I am not sure about which side I agree with. If the answer is that we create an alternative version of ourselves, I think an alternative virtual reality does exist. If we just create an altered version of ourselves through technology, I think that the online world is simply an altered version of reality, rather than a completely new reality.