The Matrix

In The Matrix, humans are placed in a simulated reality created by sentient machines. The machines harvest energy from the activity of the human body, both body temperature and electrical activity. It follows Neo, who is able to escape this fabricated reality and rebels against his oppressors. He has been shown the truth, and as such he can never go back. Neo is taught the inner workings of the Matrix, as well as how to be proficient in martial combat, and because he is self-aware, he’s able to circumvent and avoid many restrictions. He rejuvenates the people’s revolution against their robot overlords. He has to use his unique powers, entering and exiting the Matrix in order to progress the revolution.

The Ideas of The Matrix

Heaven or Hell?

A big source of conversation is whether the “Matrix” is a sort of heaven or hell. The outside world is so ruined by the war between humans and robots that it might be preferable for some to simply stay inside the Matrix and avoid the horrid nature of the outside world. At least within the Matrix, one can live a semi-normal life. The quality of life outside the Matrix is miserable, and some have even wished to go back to the Matrix but struggle to cope because they know that it’s all fake. The bottom line is the idea that we would hate for this to become reality, for us to be put in a scenario where we have to choose between this normal life or hell. The movie is, in a sense, a cautionary tale. “The Matrix is a powerful metaphor for the dangers of unchecked technological advancement, and a reminder that we need to be careful about what we create” (Rawat).

Malicious AI

These are topics that come up even nowadays. AI threatens to remove human jobs and replace them with robots. A lot of people resent AI for this. This is due in part to the idea that even if AI can eliminate the need for humans to do certain jobs, in our society, those people are out of employment, and have no means to survive. This is caused by the system that we live in, in which labor is exchanged for money, which is exchanged for survival.

This is, by far, the most sinister depiction of Artificial Intelligence present on this website. While HAL can be described as bad, the Matrix goes far beyond the scope of people present on a ship into the entirety of the human race (barring some exceptions).

Virtual Reality

These ideas can also extend to people’s perspectives of virtual reality, and whether a “fake” reality is worthwhile. Some say that the “realness” of normal reality is irrelevant in many ways, especially in recreational settings or contexts. Others say that the fact that it is in our perceived reality is what makes it worthwhile. If humanity is sated, we won’t dare to question the reality of the world around us. But, as the film both explains and stresses, once that reality is shattered, one can never go back to a state of content, ever-working bliss. The important thing is for the higher ups to keep humanity sated so that they continue their lives as normal (O’Marah).

The Experts

This representation of AI isn’t too improbable in the future. Our virtual reality and AI technology have advanced so far within even the last decade. Some people even entertain the idea that we are inside a “Matrix” of our own, or in a kind of artificial simulation, being AI that believes it is sentient. Entertaining the idea a bit, we could even be in a situation just like the Matrix. We’ve actually already done the same thing. Some farmers have even experimented with using VR headsets on cows. The cows truly believe that they are in a field of grass, despite being in a cold, metallic prison. They are only used for producing milk, but by having them believe that they are in a field, the farmers receive increased milk output and quality (Coleman). This exactly mirrors the plot and premise of The Matrix.

Neo can choose to either take the blue pill and return back to peaceful bliss, or take the red pill and know the reality of his world, never being able to return back to his perception of reality before. He would know the truth of being a slave to the AI in the real world.