This week’s reading by Baudrillard, which talked about the nature of our reality and the “desert of the real.” After this reading, and after our class discussion, it got me thinking about what we consider reality in our lives, and the proof we have to support it. In the 1999 film, The Matrix, Leo, who seems to be an average person just going through his normal life, is introduced to Morpheus, who tells him that the reality that he knows is a façade, and that he can show Leo the true reality, although it might not be one that he likes. Or Leo can choose to just forget about everything Morpheus has said and choose to forget everything and live every day as if it were normal. Leo must choose to take one of the two pills depending on what he chooses. Ultimately, Leo chooses to be enlightened about reality and discovers that AI robots have taken over the world and are farming human beings and putting their consciousness in a simulation called the matrix, which is what we know as the real world today.
There has always been a debate about which pill, the red pill or the blue pill, one would take. If humanity were living in a world like the Matrix, even though everyone in it is in a simulation, everyone believes it to be a reality. So is a perceived reality, a true reality if everyone is in agreement. Everyone is treating this reality like it is a reality before Morpheus comes along. Leo has no real issue with the simulation until he finds out it’s a simulation. Is it really such a bad thing to be in a simulation of a stable world instead of a war-torn world with killer AI robots?
Most people in the world would probably be alright with continuing to go through their life the way it is. But if I found out we were in a simulation, which some theories are saying that there is a high probability that we are, then I think I might have to discover the truth just life Leo has. But since in the Matrix it is all in a way an impulse decision, who knows what I would choose when presented with the option, and who knows which path that would lead the remainder of my life.
I will attach a couple of links to the theory of us being in a simulated reality. It is super interesting and definitely something enjoyable to think about and debate with your peers.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tlTKTTt47WE&frags=pl%2Cwn
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