The Matrix In viewing the Matrix, a 1999 Warner Brothers/Village Roadshow Picture release, there are numerous references to philosophy portrayed in the movie. In analyzing the Matrix one will be able to see how Descartes" Meditations on Methodic doubt, his Evil Genius Hypothesis, and Plato's allegory of the cave are portrayed in this film. According to Descartes" Meditation on methodic doubt he tries to achieve absolute certainty about the nature of everything. In order to acquire absolute certainty, Descartes must first lay a complete foundation of integrity on which to build up his knowledge. The technique that he uses to lay this foundation is doubt. Descartes starts by looking at our usual sources of truth such as physics, astronomy, and medicine. He looks at these truths and doubts them feeling that these are not reliable sources of truth because time shows that we are all eventually proven wrong, much in the same way that science has been proven wrong over the courses of history. In relation to the Matrix, the Matrix is "everywhere." According to Morpheus, the leader of the resistance, The Matrix is everywhere; it is all around us, even now in this very room. You can see it as you look out your window or when you turn on your television. You can feel it when you go to work, when you go to church, when you pay your taxes. It is the world that has been pulled over your eyes to blind you from the truth (Matrix Movie). The truth that Morpheus speaks about is the truth that everyone in Neo's world, including Neo has been born into slavery. They have been born into a "prison" built for their mind. In regards to the meditations Morpheus is telling Neo that the world that he lives in is merely a false idea and should be doubted. However, telling Neo what the Matrix consists of is not enough. To fully understand what the Matrix is Neo will have to choose whether he wishes to learn about the Matrix or to believe what ever he wants to believe.
