As "Reality" Fades Into Another.

We have been exploring, for awhile now, the prospects of "reality" and fiction containing an indeterminate amount of overlap. We have taken a highbrow and lowbrow approach, and have seen how this theme is relayed through different times and mediums.

There are a couple distinctions that I feel should be made regarding this theme. The first only gains one rung on the ladder. This is the realization that the current "reality" is a fiction. This is the movie of the Matrix, and the first part of the Tempest. Neo, after much disbelief and some denial, realizes that the life he had been living was not real, that it was literally a construct in his mind.

After thinking about this I found that this first step is generally associated with a magus or special leader. This is Morpheus for Neo, and Prospero for the characters in the Tesmpest. Sexson mentioned something interesting on Monday which called into question the reliability of these leaders. Something surely seems amiss.

To an extent, it is true that just like Dorothy Neo didn't need the guidance of Morpheus. The realization could have been made, though not without difficulty. And like Dumbo who "needs" the feather to fly, the journey to the knowledge that the current "reality" is actually fiction is a personal journey realized through some form of catalyst.



But let us move on to the next step, because this one may be truly disheartening. In the sequels to the first Matrix film, Neo apparently has the ability (outside of the Matrix construct) to affect the machines of the "real" world. Is this a hole in the narrative? Did the Wachowski Brothers make a mistake? It seems that just as Neo realized his power in the Matrix construct, so to does he realize his power outside of it. Which now begs the question: Is Zion "real"? Well, a lot has been discussed on this, and this site goes into great depth on the issue: http://www.matrix-explained.com/matrix_within_a_matrix.htm



So then, there is the second rung, and the end of the Tempest. The realization that perception is not entirely trustworthy, and it cannot be dismissed that there may be another level above our current "reality." The second is devoid of a Prospero or a magus to show us the way. The second is understood because we learned the first time around. If we are to question "reality" once, then at no point is it possible to stop. "Reality" is itself a construction of the mind and there is an infinite amount of crossover, and repetition, and deja vu, and memory. We search and we search and find it difficult to recall. The words of Prospero echo thus in our minds, indeed... what seest thou else in the dark backward and abysm of time?