Comparing Plato And Descartes In The Matrix

In evaluating Socrates ' success in arguing against Thrasymachus ' account, it is imperative to begin by appreciating Socrates ' intentions and the place of Thrasymachus ' account within that goal. As the literary director of Republic, Plato is well-positioned to articulate any arguments contained in Republic to his advantage, and I suggest that he very much does. Further, although Socrates is but Plato 's literary vehicle in Republic, for the sake of clarity I shall attribute and refer to arguments and views expressed throughout as belonging to Socrates.

This can be challenged as to sit in a lecture you must be certain that you’re sitting in a lecture, but you cannot be certain that you are not actually dreaming, therefore you cannot be certain that you’re sitting in a lecture. P2 – there is no way to be certain that the experiences we perceive to be reality are our reality. Descartes’ argues that there is no way that we can be completely certain that such experiences are not unconscious experiences, “Any experience that strikes me as waking experiences such that I am perceiving the environment in a normal way are indistinguishable from possible dreaming experiences.”

The Republic is considered to be one of Plato’s most storied legacies. Plato recorded many different philosophical ideals in his writings. Addressing a wide variety of topics from justice in book one, to knowledge, enlightenment, and the senses as he does in book seven. In his seventh book, when discussing the concept of knowledge, he is virtually addressing the cliché “seeing is believing”, while attempting to validate the roots of our knowledge. By his use of philosophical themes, Plato is able to further his points on enlightenment, knowledge, and education. In this allegory, the depictions of humans as they are chained, their only knowledge of the world is what is seen inside the cave. Plato considers what would happen to people

In “The Matrix” and Plato’s Phaedo and Republic questions of what makes up a whole and fulfilling life are answered. Both The Matrix and Plato provide alternate forms of reality, one that is based on truth and is fulfilling and one that is based on a false reality that offers false forms of fulfillment. The Matrix and Plato show the difference of living a life in a true reality and a “fake” reality where everything inside this reality is fake making the lives inside this reality fake. True education, the ability to recollect, and knowledge of reality gives people the ability to live their lives in truth and give life meaning

To know anything about the external world on the basis or your sensory experiences, you have to know that you are not dreaming.

The Matrix, Plato’s, The Republic, and Descartes, Meditations on First Philosophy, 1641 were somewhat similar as the individuals described in these stories, were existing in a world where deception encompassed

In conclusion, there are many parts of these two stories that are very similar while at the same time having parts of the story that are completely different. Even though The Matrix and “The Allegory of the Cave have different settings and show a different point of view , they also have comparable plots, characters, and symbols. These stories succeeded in telling the story of trying to obtain true enlightenment and the different journeys taken to get there. Both stories need to be read/watched and the person watching should take the time to dissect each story and indulge in the true

Much like Neo from The Matrix, this man chose to briefly continue believing the lie, since it was more familiar. Eventually this man begins to accept this new reality by placing the knowledge of what he now knows to be true about the shadows and reflections and builds upon these facts until he reaches the principle that the sun, the very thing he previously discounted as artificial, was in fact genuine and in a sense responsible for most of his deception inside of the cave. Finally, Socrates claims this man would feel joy now that he is completely liberated from deception and has sympathy or the other’s that are still living in a false reality. This is where The Matrix and Plato’s allegory are somewhat dissimilar. While Socrates characterizes the liberated man in high spirits, Neo does not demonstrate this same pleasure after learning the truth.

The philosophical thought is that the mind and body are two separate things; with one being able to exist without the other has caused much discussion and debate among philosophers and theologians over the years. René Descartes and Plato, two well-known philosophers, argue that people have a mind or soul, which is somehow connected with the body, but the mind or soul can exist independently from our body. Descartes introduces the mind-body argument while Plato presents the soul-body argument. Although the arguments differ in some ways, Descartes and Plato also have similar opinions on the issue. As a person of faith, there is some difficulty in explaining to a non-believer that when a person dies, the soul does not perish with the body. While siding with Descartes and his belief in a perfect God, this essay seeks to review the issues of dualism and meditation, through the eyes of Descartes and Plato.

In Chapter 2 of Republic, Glaucon uses the Myth of the Lydian Shepherd to portray a pessimistic view of human nature. Plato, the author of Republic, uses his brother Glaucon to tell the Myth of the Lydian Shepherd. We are led to believe that Plato takes the myth and its implications on human nature very seriously by use of a personal character. The argument, originally given by Thrasymachus, contends that at the root of our human nature we all yearn for the most profit possible. It also contends that any man will act immorally if given free reign. The theory proves unplausible due to circularity in the argument and implications that prove untrue.

People say life is a mystery and is not susceptible to anything except for death. Most say that there is even life after death. But what if all of that was just futile. That we were not even real. That we are just a dream or a simulation of some other world. This is the topic that could make most confused or skeptical and make some question our very existence. Are we real? Do we have free will? Is life a simulation? Life could be a simulation or a dream in the sense that we have the technology to do so. To be able to run a simulation, we would have to have the processing power to be able to interact with every A.I. and to process every thought and action that everything does. But we are decades away from that.

In the beginning of the movie Thomas Anderson, or Neo, is arrested. The agents try to cut a bargain trading a new life for giving up Morpheus.

Is it what appears in front of us or is it something else beyond what our mind can process directly. Plato talks about the this in his Allegory of the Cave. In the allegory, Plato uses the metaphor of prisoners who have never been outside of a cave being shown shadows that look like animals and other forms of life. If the prisoners are given the same choice that Morpheus presents to Neo, to stay in the cave or leave it most would choose to stay in the reality they are familiar with. I like Neo would opt for the unpopular path of leaving the matrix because once I was shown the possibility that what was presented to me was a fallacy I would no longer be able to accept the world around me as fact.

As I was reading through the synopsis of the Matrix, and the readings from Plato and Descartes, I noticed resemblances along with several differences. I think the biggest difference is that they were all trying to understand whether or not reality/life is real, or if someone or something else controls it. The biggest difference I noticed was that they were all controlled by different “powers”. Computers controlled Neo from the Matrix; we know this because it says that the brains are connected via cables to a powerful computer. I would say that in Plato’s situation, other humans, or mankind controls them; they call themselves prisoners and are in chains.

While similarities exist in all three examples such as someone else controlling our reality, enlightening those who are naïve about true reality and reactions to enlightenment that exist between the movie The Matrix, the excerpt from Allegory of the Cave by Plato and Meditation I of the Things of Which We May Doubt by Rene Descartes, there is a subtle difference in regards to being informed by others or seeking answers constantly yourself about what is real.