Response to Lecture "What is Reality?"

Tuesday’s lecture “What is Reality?” really go me thinking about the concept of what is real and what is perceived to be real. When you look up the word reality in the dictionary there are several definitions. The definition of reality that I believe to be most accurate is the philosophical definition that reality is the totality of real things in the world, independent of people's knowledge or perception of them.

In the production of Matrix 1999 the main character Neo has always questioned his reality, but the truth is far beyond his imagination. Neo finds himself targeted by the police when he is contacted by Morpheus. Morpheus awakens Neo to the real world, a ravaged wasteland where most of humanity has been captured by a race of machines who imprison human minds within an artificial reality known as the Matrix. As a rebel against the machines, Neo must return to the Matrix and confront the agents: super-powerful computer programs devoted to exterminating Neo and the entire human rebellion. This movie puts an emphasis on the importance of knowing and accepting the truth, even an unpleasant truth, over lies or illusions. 

Inception 2010 is set in a world where technology is capable of entering the human mind through dream invasion. Dom Cobb, a highly skilled thief is the best in the dangerous art of extraction, stealing valuable secrets from deep within the subconscious during the dream state. Cobb’s skill has made him an international fugitive and cost him everything he has ever loved. Cobb is given a single chance at redemption which involves executing his toughest job to date: Inception. Cobb and his team have to pull off the reverse: their task is not to steal an idea but to plant one.

The similarities I see between the two films, as Mr. Z said, is that they both make you question your reality. Inception makes you wonder if you are in the real world or a dream world while Matrix makes you wonder if you are in the real world or a machine-induced dream world; both throw you for a loop. Also in both movies the main characters, Dom Cobb and Neo, are both considered fugitives to the authorities and are constantly on the run in pursuit of their mission.