BUT DO YOU WANT THE TRUTH?

The Wachowskis' science fiction movie The Matrix is perhaps one of the most influential films ever produced. Thomas Anderson, a computer programmer who goes by the alias "Neo," a hacker, learns the truth about his world when he learns that "The Matrix" actually exists. After searching for a man named Morpheus who can inform him more about the Matrix, he runs into another hacker named Trinity. Trinity brings Neo to Morpheus after a failed effort that resulted in Agent Smith's capture and bugging of him. The Matrix is obliquely described by Morpheus as this all-encompassing prison, as well as Neo's world, which has been pulled over his eyes to prevent him from seeing the truth. As he says, "You have to see it for yourself," no one can be told what the Matrix is. So, Neo is given the option between two pills: a blue pill and a red pill. He stays in his regular life and believes whatsoever he wants to believe if he takes the blue pill. "All I'm offering is the truth," says Morpheus. "If he selects the red pill, he will enter the matrix and discover what the matrix really is." Neo swallows the red pill and falls into the rabbit hole as a result. The Matrix is regarded as a philosophical movie that explores various traditional philosophical and religious issues, including prophecy, love, reality, karma, the concept of reality, and simulation-based existence. However, the Matrix and Plato's Allegory of the Cave appear to have a powerful affinity for one another. In this allegory from Plato's Republic, Socrates talks about a group of people who have lived their entire lives chained to a wall within a cave. The bare shadows displayed on the wall in front of them are the only reality they know, and they take them to be actual people. Then one of the inmates is set free. He emerges from the cave and encounters the outside world. However, he encounters opposition when he goes back to the cave to inform the other inmates of the truth. This video explores the topic, "Do we, as human beings, really want the truth?" by analyzing The Matrix movie through the prism of Plato's Allegory of the Cave.

The chained inmates of the cave cannot move their necks or legs. They cannot look around, see each other, or even the wall they are chained to; they can only sit and observe the wall in front of them. A fire is burning behind the captives. Between the convicts and the fire are humans. These people are holding sticks that project onto the wall in the shapes of animals such as horses, dogs, and birds. They have only ever witnessed projections of things that actually exist in the real world, which is a strange place to them. One of the prisoners sees sunshine for the initial time when he escapes from the cave and emerges into the outside world. He has never seen daylight before, so he is perplexed and requires adjusting time. But after his eyes have adjusted, he sees every form he is familiar with from his time spent living in the cave. But this time, they're different. He sees the actual creatures, full of color and rich in detail, as opposed to just silhouettes. Then he understands that what he had believed to be real was only an illusion. Neo has also been held captive without having the opportunity to see the facility. His naked body is lying in a liquid-filled capsule when he emerges from the simulation. Then he sees millions of other pods with beings connected to (what appears to be) a massive machine after noticing that his body is covered in plugs. Neo's body is unplugged and dumped into a sewer when a monitoring drone detects that he has awoken. Like the cave escapee from Plato, Neo needs some time to acclimate to the outside world after being rescued by Morpheus' ship, the Nebuchadnezzar. The type of reality that Plato's character and Neo encounter is a key point of contrast in their experiences. In Plato's allegory, the freedman moves from the lower level inside the cave to a higher level outside, from the darkness into the light. This ascent is a metaphor for learning new things, developing into a philosopher, and ultimately understanding the world. Overall, Plato's reality appears to be more lovely than the cave. Additionally, there has been a significant improvement in the freedom of mobility outside. Overall, it appears far more enjoyable to be in the outside world, and it seems crazy to choose a life in a cave over one. The Matrix, however, is unique. In the children's book Alice in Wonderland, Morpheus warns Neo that he will reveal how far down the rabbit hole he has fallen if he decides to take the red pill. A rabbit hole's descent resembles a descent into reality rather than an ascension. This concept is realized when Neo plunges from a largely enjoyable environment into a terrible wasteland controlled by machines. The reality in The Matrix is not lovely as Plato's reality. It isn't perfect. People connected to the Matrix reside in a large, vibrant, sunny environment that reminds them of the late 1990s (although having a green haze). Additionally, they can enjoy a vast array of human joys. But in reality, there is only one human city remaining, Zion, where people are forced to dwell in the periphery and are always in danger of being wiped out by robots. Therefore, it may be argued that living in captivity in the cave in The Matrix is more enjoyable than living freely in society.

Soon after being freed, Neo initially rejects reality. "No, I don't think it's true. He exclaims, "It's impossible," as Morpheus explains what the Matrix is. When faced with the hard reality, he exhibited a usual response. We can observe this when, for example, we find out that one of our parents isn't our biological parent, as the creator of The Matrix says in the sequel: "Denial is the most foreseeable of all human responses." Alternatively, we discover that our parent is our worst enemy. In these situations, the gravity of the truth is such that accepting it upends one's entire sense of self. People are typically terrified by such a drastic change in perception. Morpheus responds to Neo, "I can't go back, can I? But if you might, would you truly want to?" Morpheus responds. It's normal to dismiss the truth outright. Many individuals would rather stay inside their secure bubble of lies than search for the truth outside of it. If you want to live in a cozy, fake reality, you must keep yourself uninformed of everything that might burst your bubble. Instead, you accept the herd's false narrative, frequently accentuated by media and entertainment. But we also observe the converse, with people rejecting conventional wisdom and embracing untruths like the notion that the Earth is flat. Therefore, it is often simple to create the truth. Morpheus' mission is to free the people from the Matrix, and Merriam-Webster defines truth as "a judgment, proposition, or concept that is true or recognized as true." But he also understands that these individuals are the enemy as long as they are a part of the system, partly because so-called 'agents' are responsible for maintaining the Matrix. These agents operate somewhat like a security program to keep Trojan horses and other malware out. Every projection of a human being is also potentially an agency. Second, the majority of them aren't prepared to be disconnected. Similar opposition and derision are encountered when Plato's enlightened man tries to convince others inside the cave to leave. It's a waste of time trying to persuade someone of the truth if they aren't open to it, according to Plato, who described such an endeavor as "inserting vision into blind eyes."

Similarly, Socrates wonders if these individuals wouldn't kill the person telling them the truth about their existence. Morpheus also claims that many people are so utterly dependent on the system that they will fight to protect it. However, Plato emphasizes that the philosopher must work in the unenlightened's best interests, even if they are hostile, just as Neo, Morpheus, Trinity, as well as the other free people do.

In Plato's metaphor, we can observe that freedom ultimately has a good impact on the released person. Neo also comes to terms with reality and welcomes it in the end. But what if somebody is aware of the truth but rejects it with such ferocity? What then? This is where Cypher, a character, enters the picture. "I know what you're thinking, 'cause right now I'm thinking the same thing," Cypher tells Neo, perhaps presuming that he has the same regret about taking the red pill. I've been wondering why I didn't take the BLUE pill since I arrived here. However, Neo's body language shows he does not share Cypher's viewpoint. Despite being trapped in the same evil environment, he appears content with his release. As he accepts responsibility for aiding others still in prison, Neo finds significance in it and essentially assumes the position of Plato's enlightened man.

Additionally, even when he was still linked in and uninformed, he always sensed something odd. He thought he wasn't welcome there. He wasn't content. He got what he had been searching for as a result of his liberation, which more than makes up for having to face reality's desolation. His existence is considerably more meaningful because he is regarded as "The One" by many. Contrarily, Cypher has no interest in reality at all. Finally, he plugs himself into the Matrix to attend a covert rendezvous with Agent Smith, demonstrating little faith in Morpheus' prediction of "The One." He asserts to Smith, knowing complete well that his argument will be ignored: "You know, I'm certain this steak doesn't exist. I am aware that the Matrix will inform my brain that it is juicy and wonderful when I eat it. Do you know what I've learned in the last nine years? Quote: "Ignorance is bliss. Cypher is well aware that he cannot take it back once he has seen something after coming into contact with the truth. He thought Ignorance was great before Morpheus showed up and ruined the party. There is no turning back once the curtain of misinformation has been thrown back. In plain view of us is the truth. We cannot unsee that our presumed father is not our biological father. We cannot undo the betrayal of a partner we once took for granted. When a person's essential narrative is false and reality is revealed to be less than ideal, a connection between them changes. Before the secret was revealed, the relationship was more pleasurable. Yes, it was founded on a lie. But despite our Ignorance, we nevertheless felt a sense of intimacy, love, enjoyment, and (ironically) trust. Truth undid all of that. Cypher becomes aware of his underlying immobility in a world he despises. As a result, he requests that Agent Smith make him someone powerful and wealthy, "like an actor," as he put it. The most crucial thing is that he wants to erase all recollections of the outside world. He offers him Morpheus in exchange.

Cypher, in essence, made a hedonistic choice to trade freedom and reality for happy Ignorance. Interestingly, he shares his conception of freedom and reality with the Trinity, which he believes justifies his actions. Trinity points out that Morpheus freed him while Cypher tries to deport Morpheus. Cypher, however, disagrees and claims that all he does is carry out the instructions of a liar. And when forced to pick between that versus the Matrix, he selects the latter. Then Trinity makes the case that the Matrix is fake. Cypher, however, continues to be of the opposite opinion, adding, "I think that the Matrix can be more real than this world."

Technology allows those who have been freed from the Matrix to plug themselves into the system and participate in the virtual world, referred to as Residual Self Image (RSI). They have the ability to load different things into the Matrix, like weapons, and upload programs that contain martial arts expertise directly into their heads. Many guns. They were thus given the illusion to experience first. They are illusionists now on their own. Neo encounters a new perspective on his home city when he returns to the Matrix for the first time following his release. He understands that none of his recollections are true. Though 'lucidly,' he knows that the locations he used to eat, work, and live are simulacra. The shadows on the wall must have seemed the same to Plato's enlightened man entering the cave for the first time following his ascent. One is likely left disappointed by the lack of charisma these appearances formerly possessed and perhaps feeling disillusioned. When a magic trick is revealed, it loses much of its attraction. Therefore, truth frequently comes at the expense of fun. Santa Claus, a legendary figure in Western Christian culture who descended from the early Christian bishop Saint Nicholas, is an illustration of this. The concept of an elderly guy with a beard traveling from the North Pole in a sleigh drawn by flying reindeer is a wonderfully fantastic experience for most children. The story goes that at a hidden workshop, Santa's elves craft toys and other presents, which he then delivers to the kids on Christmas Eve. Santa Claus makes an annual appearance, and to a young mind, that event is practically holy, given all the stories, melodies, fairy tales, and movies about him. However, parents tell the reality about Santa Claus when their children are around six. Many young people react emotionally and with skepticism. An illusion that was once much loved gets destroyed and loses its allure. Therefore, it's easy to feel nostalgic for a time when we didn't know the truth, and a "surrogate truth" seemed more enticing. Cypher also feels this kind of longing. It's remarkable that while knowing something is phony, people may still like it. The actions of a character by the name of the Oracle are an illustration of this in The Matrix. Although it looks to be an elderly woman, The Oracle is actually a computer program that was one of the founding members of the third "current" iteration of the Matrix. But after serving her purpose, she withdrew into exile and began aiding the rebels. She appears to like the world even though, as a computer program, she is well aware of how illusionary it is. She enjoys the fragrance of cookies, smokes, loves chocolates, and enjoys watching the sunset. The Merovingian, a character from The Matrix Reloaded sequel, who is passionate about the French language and loves giving beautiful women dessert with a happy ending, exhibits the same behavior. Like a genuine Frenchman, he also appears to like the flavor of olives. Of course, since both of these characters are "software," these pastimes might be a part of their design. However, they demonstrate the ability of people to act as though an illusion is real. This behavior is referred to in philosophy as "suspension of disbelief," which is the deliberate avoidance of skepticism, critical thinking, and reasoning when confronted with the unreal. Humans have avidly consumed illusions as entertainment for eons, from movies and theatrical productions to historical puppet plays. Similar to how Plato's figure can still decide to act as though the silhouettes in the cave are actual people, he can also suspend his disbelief to enjoy himself and spend time with his old, ignorant pals. The opportunities for enjoying fakery are boundless when it comes to The Matrix. The illusion created by the Matrix is superior to reality, unlike the illusionists in Plato's cave. This is also evident in the technologies of today. People can become so absorbed in a video game that they are living a second life that is generally more fulfilling and enjoyable. However, the things you see on the screen are just projections, not actual items. One must temporarily suspend that truth to enjoy them as if they were true. Similarly, characters like Neo as well as Trinity may enjoy themselves in the Matrix, perhaps by going out to a special dinner and taking a stroll along the Seine at night in Paris. When it's convenient, people appear to be able to accept and appreciate the deception momentarily.

Do we truly desire the truth? Most people would respond "yes" to this query if it were put to them. However, when we examine Plato's Allegory and The Matrix, we find that the way that people relate to truth is not that straightforward. We embrace the truth in some situations. In other cases, we try to avoid the fact, put it on hold, reject it, or even wish we could forget it. Cypher, one of the most stunning instances, is one. People's contempt for a truth that challenges their reality may be seen in Plato's writings and The Matrix. We tend to cling to comfortable, familiar, and meaningful things and occasionally go to great lengths to protect them.

Regarding the latter, we must consider how willing people are to die for their political and religious beliefs. Do we desire the truth once more? We often treat the facts selectively since the truth can take various shapes and magnitudes. The response seems to be: "It depends." The truth can inspire us, leave us indifferent, or even depressed and miserable. For instance, finding the truth in Plato's allegory rarely has negative effects. The hostile nature of those in the cave is the sole drawback. Apart from that, it is clear that Plato's truth leads to a better situation and is uplifting to most people. However, the truth is less entertaining in The Matrix. Truth's impact on us, however, is dependent on the individual receiving it and the truth itself. In the instance of Neo and Morpheus, the status of the world gave them purpose and validated their struggle as liberators of mankind, which is a fantastic objective to have in life.

On the other hand, Cipher mocks that objective, displaying his cynicism and the lack of significance he feels in life. People frequently use surrogate truths to mask uncomfortable realities. Others relish unpleasant truths, yet they often contribute to their pessimistic outlook. Both sides also frequently disregard data that contradicts their preferred worldview. They associate with those who share, if not all, of their worldviews. Whether or not a particular truth is absolute, there are advantages to sharing it. Once more, consider political movements, religious movements, as well as even flat-earth society. People can find meaning and social relationships by joining such groups. For instance, in The Matrix, we can observe how Morpheus and his fellow humans are united by their faith in The One. The drawback is that you could get isolated from other members if you accept opposite opinions as a member, even if they are accurate. And this is where the perverse aspect of suspending disbelief enters the picture. Some, if not many, are prepared to ignore the truth not only for pure amusement but also for the sake of convenience. For instance, someone might continue to believe something that is wrong despite their better judgment only to fit in or out of fear of rejection.

All in all, individuals are quite opportunistic regarding the truth. We seek "a" truth rather than necessarily "the" truth. We don't necessarily desire "the reality," just "a" reality. However, there is a commonality between truth and lies: they both take the form of stories. Could it be that what we desire is a story that we can believe in, connect with, tell others, reflect on, and—perhaps most importantly—give us a sense of purpose and belonging?