While looking at blogs, I was excited to read the Dialectics prompt, probably because I had so much fun with it. I read a few different responses, but the one that sparked the most interest in me was Laila's. She compared restriction and freedom, and it immediately reminded me of religion. Many people have different views on religion, and one of these contradicting beliefs is whether it restricts or frees you.
Laila,
Your paragraph describing restriction reminded me a lot of the idea of fate and that God or some other all-powerful being as a path laid out for you. You still have "choices" within that path, but in the end you will end up in the same place. Many religions believe that, and to me that is the easy way out. It allows people to sit back and anything happen because they believe that no matter what they do, they'll end up in the same place anyways. It completely aggravates me. But, as you further pointed out, what if we were living in a world where our choices were made for us but we were under the illusion that we were in control? Then I agree with you, that it is not restriction because we are not seeing ourselves as being restricted. If in this life we are set on a path by some divine being and don't have control over our future but all the while believe that we do, I don't believe that we are truly being restricted. But once you sit back and let everything fly pass you because you believe you'll end up in the same place, then you become restricted.
After looking at a few more blogs and prompts, I found that the Dialectics prompt was the one that sparked my interest the most. Eliana's entry was interesting, in which she compared the ideas of bliss and darkness.
Eliana,
After reading your blog, I realized that it hit an idea that I was struggling with in my head but wasn't able to fully comprehend it. And now, after reading Laila's response as well, I feel as if I am slightly repeating what has been said by both of you. But oh, well. After watching the Matrix, I found myself trying to figure out which world I'd rather be in: simulated or real? The immediate answer should be real for most people, because that seems to be the correct world to desire. That's what all of the good people in the movie go for. But Neo seems extremely miserable once he's pulled out of the Matrix. To be fair, we don't know if he was always so sad, but to me it seemed like he wasn't having a great time. Personally, I would be with Eliana, Laila, and Cypher. I honestly believe that I would be happier living in my blissful fantasy world. If I was pulled into the real world, I wouldn't be able to handle it. So I somewhat agree with Eliana's claim that the real world is blissful, but the people living in it don't seem too happy. To me, the happier people are the ones who stay in the Matrix.
In this blog post, Nikki debates whether or not there is a possibility that we as a human race are currently living within the Matrix. She acknowledges that while the idea is improbable, there is no way for us to prove that we live in a world of reality and not in one of simulation. Eventually, Nikki acknowledges that she believes that our world is real and that we are not in the Matrix. However, she also intriguingly notes that even if we were in the Matrix, our lives would not be considered lies since our brain's interpretation of our surrounding world makes it feel real.
ReplyDeleteIn many respects, I agree with Nikki in the notion that we are neither in the Matrix nor can we truly prove whether we are or not. The realist in me would tell Nikki that we don't have the scientific technology to develop a computer software as complex as the Matrix, and thus, it's not even our job to question whether such a simulated reality is even possible. Alternatively, the idealist in me would agree with Nikki in the sense that humans from their individual perspectives can enjoy and perceive their lives as reality whether they be living in the Matrix or not.
Having analyzed the qualities of the Matrix's presence, I address Nikki's final point by using a hypothetical situation and assuming that we do in fact live within the Matrix. How authentic are our lives in such a state? And if we do believe in the progression of the human race, do we take the blue pill and choose to live in the happy yet ignorant world of the Matrix or do we take the red pill and choose to liberate ourselves from a world where we don't control our future? Despite the idealist perspective of living happily in a simulated world, I believe that we must take the red pill and strive for a free world where our own thoughts and actions determine our destiny rather than that of a computer software.