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THE MATRIX REFELECTIONS

What do you remember about the frist time seeing the frist matrix.
How did you feel when it was over. What did you do after.
How did it change YOU.

I really started getting into philosophy after i saw the matrix. At first philosophy seemed complicated and distant, but the matrix movie really grounded it to the point that i could understand. It also made readind Joseph campbells "HEro With a Thousand Faces" alot easier. After I saw the first matrix (on DVD), I became an instant cult fan and watched it over and over again.

I am the same way superfly. I have started to read and study more philosophy books. I even found this website called matrix-explained.com In the forums, someone wrote essays on Reloaded and Revolutions, analyzing both movies throughly. I understood both movies and I liked them both, but after reading these essays, the movies make even more sense and answer every question in the movies. Would you like me to post the essays here?

sure, its time for some intillectuall thought in this place...

Originally posted by vader519
I am the same way superfly. I have started to read and study more philosophy books. I even found this website called matrix-explained.com In the forums, someone wrote essays on Reloaded and Revolutions, analyzing both movies throughly. I understood both movies and I liked them both, but after reading these essays, the movies make even more sense and answer every question in the movies. Would you like me to post the essays here? yes.

The Solution of Knowledge/Enlightenment. This duality between the matrix and the reality beyond it sets up the ultimate goal of the rebels, which is to free all minds from the matrix and allow humans to live out their lives in the real world beyond. In making this point, the film-makers draw on both Theravada and Mahayana Buddhist ideas. Alluding to the Theravada ideal of the arhat, the film suggests that enlightenment is achieved through individual effort. As his initial guide, Morpheus makes it clear that Neo cannot depend upon him for enlightenment. Morpheus explains, "no one can be told what the matrix is. You have to see it for yourself." Morpheus tells Neo he must make the final shift in perception entirely on his own. He says: "I’m trying to free your mind, Neo. But I can only show you the door. You’re the one that has to walk through it." For Theravada Buddhists, "man’s emancipation depends on his own realization of the Truth, and not on the benevolent grace of a god or any external power as a reward for his obedient good behavior." The Dhammapada urges the one seeking enlightenment to "Free thyself from the past, free thyself from the future, free thyself from the present. Crossing to the farther shore of existence, with mind released everywhere, no more shalt thou come to birth and decay." As Morpheus says to Neo, "There’s a difference between knowing the path and walking the path." And as the Buddha taught his followers, "You yourselves should make the effort; the Awakened Ones are only teachers." As one already on the path to enlightenment, Morpheus is only a guide; ultimately Neo must recognize the truth for himself.

Originally posted by Superfly4000
I really started getting into philosophy after i saw the matrix. At first philosophy seemed complicated and distant, but the matrix movie really grounded it to the point that i could understand. It also made readind Joseph campbells "HEro With a Thousand Faces" alot easier. After I saw the first matrix (on DVD), I became an instant cult fan and watched it over and over again.

That book sound interesting, mind enlightening me about what it is about? I need a new book to read this year

Well Joseph campbell is the most famouse for the comparison of world religions and mythologies. Hero With a Thousand faces is one of his best books if you ask me. But it a very dense book. It focusses most on the human phsyke and the link that all human beings have to these same basic ideas. That book realy changed the way i saw the world and religion in general. It took me into this massive mind trip. If you want a book by him thats easier to read i would suggest "The Power of Myth" which is the documentation of an interview between him and Bill Meyers. But after you read some of his stuff, the whole Matrix Experience makes so much more sense.

Originally posted by Superfly4000
Well Joseph campbell is the most famouse for the comparison of world religions and mythologies. Hero With a Thousand faces is one of his best books if you ask me. But it a very dense book. It focusses most on the human phsyke and the link that all human beings have to these same basic ideas. That book realy changed the way i saw the world and religion in general. It took me into this massive mind trip. If you want a book by him thats easier to read i would suggest "The Power of Myth" which is the documentation of an interview between him and Bill Meyers. But after you read some of his stuff, the whole Matrix Experience makes so much more sense. Well put.

Originally posted by TheOne101
That book sound interesting, mind enlightening me about what it is about? I need a new book to read this year it is a very GOOD book.

Glad to hear it thanks Super. I'll check out those books, any idea as to if they are linkd like a sequence i should start in. I havent really read any books on this matrix sort of idea excpet for the philosophical stuff on the matrix offical site. If possible i will get both books but if not which should i go for first? Thanks again

Im not sure if there is any sequence. Just find the book that intrests you the most and read it.

Sounds good, thanks dude.
By the way have you heard of Neuromancer? I heard it was a good book and alot like these. Im not sure who the author is but im going to look into it.

No, I haven't. What is that about?

Synopsis
The book centers on Case, a former computer hacker who makes his living by breaking into security systems. Caught stealing from his employers, Case is rendered physically unable to withstand the rigors of access to the worldwide computer net. Unable to work, he welcomes suicidal thoughts, entering into deals that can only go bad. Willing to do anything for the chance to work again, he turns to a mysterious figure named Armitage, and by so doing begins a journey out of the gutters of 21st century Tokyo and into an ever-expanding world of multinational intrigue. Armitage pays off Case's debts, repairs his neural damage, and places him under the protection of Molly, a professional killer. As Case progresses through his assignments with Molly and a range of others enlisted by Armitage, he becomes aware of larger forces working to control his activities. Ultimately, Case realizes that it is Neuromancer, a far-reaching artificial intelligence, that he has been working for. The opus ends with Case's realization that he has been controlled by the very technology he uses.

oh the classic sci fi irony. It sounds greaat.

Indeed it does.

Neuromancer" also introduced the notion of a technology dominated dystopian society in which social decay is apparent everywhere and lasting interpersonal relationships are nonexistant. "Neuromancer" presents an image of the future. There is corruption everywhere and the essence of being human seems to be slipping away. In his novel Gibson portrays not only what the future of technology may hold, but some of the negative externalities that directly effect human nature and social interaction. In fact, Gibson focuses almost entirely on the ugly aspects of technology which is in contrast to his "matrix". Gibson totally neglects to represent any positive aspects of new technology. The society of "Neuromancer" seems to be utterly advanced in terms of technology. However, upon closer inspection this is not exactly the case. There is no evidence of successfull technology in Gibsons novel. The society of "Neuromancer" willingly allows itself to be directly controled by technology. They create incredible technologies and then use them for evil and material gain, rather than for their social well being.

Neo believes he's living a normal, but slightly troubled life in 1999. By day, a computer programmer for a large, generic software company; by night, a hacker, providing the fruits of his labors to other troubled souls. He lives alone, he doesn't sleep, and there's a profound emptiness in his life, but it's something he can't put his finger on - until he is contacted by Trinity. "It's the question that drives us", she whispers in his ear, to which he correctly responds "What is the Matrix?" It is this question that has gnawed at Neo seemingly his entire life, yet he's never put it into words before now. It is the voicing of this question that begins his transformation into The One.


Morpheus has sent Trinity to contact Neo, believing he is The One of prophecy. Morpheus explains it to Neo in this way: "When the Matrix was first built there was a man born inside that had the ability to change what he wanted, to remake the Matrix as he saw fit. It was this man who freed the first of us and taught us the truth - When he died, the Oracle prophesied his return and envisioned that his coming would hail the destruction of the Matrix."



Morpheus' followers believe in him, and they mostly believe in The Oracle's prophecy, but not necessarily his selection of candidates for The One. It is with both great anticipation and extreme dread that they "wake" Neo to the real world, knowing the path he has ahead of him, and the potential conclusion.


Neo's journey in the movie bears many hallmarks of classic myths. He is the Chosen One, the reluctant hero, the savior, and the one who will lead his people to freedom. In order to do that, he must sacrifice himself, and rise from the dead. He faces progressively greater challenges through the course of the movie, and as he begins to believe in himself, he is able to overcome these challenges, including besting his ultimate adversary, Agent Smith.

??

:raver wong one ^.>>The Matrix is, at its core, a film with a moral plot. We, the viewers, like the heroes, are in on a secret: The reality that forms the lives of millions of human beings is not real. The world that seems real to most people is in fact a computer-generated simulation, but almost no one knows it. In reality human beings are floating in liquid in machine pods, with tubes connected to them in a grotesque post-apocalyptic world where the sun is blotted out. Things seem, of course, to the average person to be the ordinary world of 1999. Although some details of the history remain untold, it is an essential part of The Matrix that we are provided with a specific account of how all of this happened. There was a battle between human beings and machines whose cognitive capacity had surpassed their own. In a desperate attempt to win, human beings blocked out the sun's light in order to deprive the machines of their power source. Despite this extreme tactic, the humans lost, were enslaved, and are now farmed to supply energy sources for the machines. The machines induce the appearance of ordinary 1999 life in the human beings with a computer generated "virtual community" for the purpose of keeping them docile and asleep so that they and their offspring can be used like living batteries. While humans seem to walk around in an ordinary life, their minds are radically deceived and their bodies are exploited. The heroes are thus depicted as fighting a noble battle for the liberation of the human species.1

I have so far drawn out two aspects of the "moral background" of the film: enslavement and deception. We should also note the perspective we have on the Matrix as viewers of The Matrix. We have what is sometimes called a "God's eye" perspective: we can see both the Matrix reality and "real" reality. We are let in on the truth about the situation, and we are not supposed to question, for example, whether the battle between Morpheus and his friends and the Agents is itself being conducted in another "meta-matrix", or whether the view of the human pods we see might only be some sort of dream image or illusion. As viewers of the Matrix, we are in on the truth and we can see for ourselves that human beings are both enslaved and deceived. Given the outlined history, we are meant to understand the situation of the humans as a terrible and unfair one.

This essay is the first part of an essay I wrote a couple of weeks ago in which I attempted to explain the story of the matrix trilogy based on the spoken dialogue in the movie. What I missed in many of the matrix interpretations that I have come across on the internet is EVIDENCE for particular views or ideas! I feel that the most important factor in developing an argument for a particular view or offering an interpretive explanation that is open to numerous interpretations (such as the matrix trilogy) is PROOF!
In other words, the interpretation of The Matrix that follows is based on evidence provided in the dialogue. Here and there I may go out on a limb, but I have tried to keep myself within limits of wild speculation by sticking to what people say in the movie or to what we see happen on screen.
So, cookies are cookies and not ‘upgrade programs’ as some people have suggested because nobody in the movies (not even the Oracle) refers to these cookies as any type of ‘upgrade program’. Zion is not a matrix-within-a-matrix because no character in the entire trilogy mentions a single word about such an onion-like or shell-like structure.
Seraph is not a previous ‘One’, because although there are hints from the Merovingian: “angel without wings”, it is not convincing enough because the Merovingian never mentions it explicitly (nor anyone else for that matter). Although there are hints from the Oracle on the Merovingian being a former One: “the Merovingian is an old, primitive program who has been here since the beginning” and from Persephone: “he was once like you ”, these pieces of dialogue are not convincing enough to suggest that the Merovingian indeed was a former One.>>from>vader519

Part 2 of the Matrix Explained
The Matrix Explained
Agent programs have tracked down the whereabouts of the new integral anomaly within the sixth version of the Matrix. The systemic anomaly is identified as Thomas Anderson who, next to his work as a software engineer, is also a renowned computer hacker who goes by the alias name of Neo.
After a visit by some cyber friends, Thomas decides to follow the white rabbit to a dance club. At the club, he meets Trinity whom, just like him, is also is a renowned computer hacker. What Thomas doesn’t realize yet is that the Oracle has already told Trinity that she would eventually fall in love with him and that he would later become the One. She offers to help him find the answer to “the question that drives us” by introducing him to Morpheus.
During their meeting, Morpheus describes the Matrix to Neo as a “prison for your mind”, a world that has been “pulled over your eyes to blind him from the truth that you are a slave”. He also confirms his belief that Thomas/Neo is the One and offers him a way out of the Matrix in the form of a red pill to see just “how deep the rabbit hole goes”.
Upon taking the red pill, Neo is reborn into the real world of Zion and is eventually located and picked up by the crew of the Nebuchadnezzar. Morpheus later tells Neo of his knowledge of the 23 individuals selected by the previous One to start the Human Resistance for the sixth time: “When the Matrix was first built, there was a man born inside who had the ability to change whatever he wanted, to remake the Matrix as he saw fit. It was he who freed the first of us and taught us the truth.”
In his first fight with Morpheus in the sparring program, Neo learns that the Matrix is a world of ideas in which “certain rules can be bent, others can be broken”. This is a lesson that would later be repeated by the little boy at the Oracle’s house when he says “it is not the spoon that bends, it is only your mind”. In another training program, Morpheus describes the Agent programs as “the gatekeepers between the program world of the Matrix and the real world of Zion”. But because their “strength and speed are still based in a world that is built on rules”, Morpheus believes Neo will be able to defeat them, once Neo learns and masters this important lesson.

.>>from>vader519

Part 3
After Cypher strikes a deal with Agent Smith, the crew of the Nebuchadnezzar enter the Matrix so that Neo can meet with the Oracle. The Oracle knows that because Neo does not believe in fate, his actions will only partly be governed by the information the Oracle provides him concerning the course of future events. Getting Neo to the Source would depend largely on his own realizing that he is indeed the One –“Temet Nosce”. In addition, because Neo likes to believe that he is “in control of his own life”, the Oracle realizes that the path to the Source should not be one that is void of free will and choice. She therefore tells Neo “you’re going to have to make a choice”, knowing very well that this choice will later be governed by his belief or skepticism about him being the One or not.
When the crew of the Nebuchadnezzar return to their exit point, they witness a glitch in the Matrix and realize that they are being followed by Agents. Eventually, Cypher betrays their whereabouts within the building and Morpheus is forced to sacrifice himself in order to save Neo. Cypher is first to exit the Matrix and while the others are waiting to exit back into the Nebuchadnezzar, he shoots Dozer and Tank. While talking to Trinity, Cypher unplugs Apoc and Switch and kills them since “the body cannot live without the mind”.
Meanwhile, back in the world of the Matrix, Agent Smith tells Morpheus of the history of the Matrix. He describes humans as viruses that “multiply and spread from one place to the next”. After Cypher is killed, Tank suggests to “pull the plug” on Morpheus to prevent him from giving up the “access codes to Zion’s mainframe computer”. Just before Tank is about to pull the plug, Neo suddenly remembers what the Oracle told him about the choice that he would have to make.
After gathering weapons and ammunition from the Matrix construct program, Neo and Trinity jack into the Matrix and set out to save Morpheus.


.>>from>vader519

Part of the Matrix Explained
Here is the 4th and final part of the essay. I hope you like it.



After saving Morpheus and Trinity, Neo is shot several times by Agent Smith when he enters room 303 in search of an exit. While lying dead, Trinity confesses her love for him, kisses him and revives him.
After Neo realizes that he is not dead, he is temporarily able to see the ‘code’ of the Matrix and merges with Agent Smith who then shatters into green light. By going through the death-and-rebirth cycle, Neo has awakened to a higher level of spirituality. Neo later hints towards his heightened consciousness of the world of programs when he says “I can feel you now, I know that you’re afraid, afraid of us, you’re afraid of change.


.>>from>vader519

closed


coming soon>>

http://www.matrixfansite.com/pics/2misc1/808-2-mis009.jpg 5/15/06



http://www.matrixfansite.com/pics/2poster3/808-2-poster35.jpg 11/05/06

Hmm... I have to agree that the first movie is the best of the series, being very explicit and also deep. But, if Neo has passed through the lie-death-rebirth cycle, then what happens to him in part three, the final acene? I have alway been puzzled as to its hidden meaning....I`m reffering of course at the scene when the little girl shows the Oracle the rising li9ght at the horizon - now, as I understood it, that light wasn`t the sun rising, because the sky was blue and there was plenty of daylight around, indicating that the day had already begun. This, combined with the Oracle`s answer "I think we will see him(Neo) again." lead me to believe that Neo had become a sort of luminous being, reaching a far superior stat of existence than any of them as a result of his many trials throughout the trilogy. By the way, wasn`t the Matrix supposed to be destroyed? How come the Oracle and the Architect (if I`m not mistaking) were there?

Just remembered that the girl made the lightshow for Neo... But wait - how come she has powers?