Science fiction as philosophy

C

Cypress

Well-known member
1. The Matrix: Knowlege vs. Ignorance vs. Freedom

In The Matrix, despite the fact that they started out in the pretend world, all our protagonists are glad to be freed from it. They reject the familiar for the truth, even though it’s inconvenient. And the same seems true for us. People seem to agree that a life filled with ignorance about the nature of the world is not as meaningful as one absent that ignorance.

Knowledge is intrinsically valuable. But that’s not the only value of knowledge. Understanding the way the world works also helps you navigate and manipulate it. So, you should also value your ability to attain knowledge and resist efforts to rob you of that ability. Just like in The Matrix, the truth can sometimes be uncomfortable, and being comfortable is not more important than understanding reality. Willful ignorance is not only pitiful, but it can endanger the rest of us— just as Cypher’s desire for ignorance put Neo, Trinity, and Morpheus in danger. This makes such willful ignorance not only epistemically unvirtuous, but morally reprehensible.

But it’s important to note that knowledge isn’t the only thing that is intrinsically valuable. After all, the Matrix doesn’t just make one ignorant; it makes one a slave to the Machines. Freedom is also important. And that’s partly why Cypher wanted to be plugged back in. In response to Trinity saying that Morpheus had set him free, Cypher says, “Free? You call this free? All I do is what he tells me to do. If I have to choose between that and the Matrix, I choose the Matrix.”

Knowledge is valuable, but so is freedom and happiness. What makes Cypher so villainous is that he doesn’t care at all for the value of knowledge and is willing to sacrifice the lives of others for his own hedonistic pleasure.



source credit: Professor David Kyle Johnson, Kings College
 
I don't necessarily agree that human nature, all other things being equal, seeks to choose knowledge over ignorance. A textbook example is MAGA.
 
Cypress said:
1. The Matrix: Knowlege vs. Ignorance vs. Freedom

In The Matrix, despite the fact that they started out in the pretend world, all our protagonists are glad to be freed from it. They reject the familiar for the truth, even though it’s inconvenient. And the same seems true for us. People seem to agree that a life filled with ignorance about the nature of the world is not as meaningful as one absent that ignorance.

Knowledge is intrinsically valuable. But that’s not the only value of knowledge. Understanding the way the world works also helps you navigate and manipulate it. So, you should also value your ability to attain knowledge and resist efforts to rob you of that ability. Just like in The Matrix, the truth can sometimes be uncomfortable, and being comfortable is not more important than understanding reality. Willful ignorance is not only pitiful, but it can endanger the rest of us— just as Cypher’s desire for ignorance put Neo, Trinity, and Morpheus in danger. This makes such willful ignorance not only epistemically unvirtuous, but morally reprehensible.

But it’s important to note that knowledge isn’t the only thing that is intrinsically valuable. After all, the Matrix doesn’t just make one ignorant; it makes one a slave to the Machines. Freedom is also important. And that’s partly why Cypher wanted to be plugged back in. In response to Trinity saying that Morpheus had set him free, Cypher says, “Free? You call this free? All I do is what he tells me to do. If I have to choose between that and the Matrix, I choose the Matrix.”

Knowledge is valuable, but so is freedom and happiness. What makes Cypher so villainous is that he doesn’t care at all for the value of knowledge and is willing to sacrifice the lives of others for his own hedonistic pleasure.



source credit: Professor David Kyle Johnson, Kings College
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transing children isn't attaining knowledge, dumbass.
 
Cypress said:
I don't necessarily agree that human nature, all other things being equal, seeks to choose knowledge over ignorance. A textbook example is MAGA.
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Be it Cypher or MAGAts, I think there's a fair amount of weakness in their beliefs. It could be mental illness or simply cowardice.

FWIW, the Matrix can be seen as a drug and anyone who seeks it is a drug addict. Obviously, drug addiction is self-destructive, and most drug addicts end up dead or in prison. Does this mean drug addicts are mentally ill? Mentally defective? Just weak?

IDK, but am inclined to think that any self-destructive behavior is irrational.
 
Kamala Trump said:
Your focus on defending transing is sick, bucko von fucko.
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When you can cite a quote proving it, maybe some people will believe you are more than just a psychotic wannabe mass murderer who associates with white supremacists and seeks to violently overthrow the US government.
 
Commander Dutch said:
Be it Cypher or MAGAts, I think there's a fair amount of weakness in their beliefs. It could be mental illness or simply cowardice.

FWIW, the Matrix can be seen as a drug and anyone who seeks it is a drug addict. Obviously, drug addiction is self-destructive, and most drug addicts end up dead or in prison. Does this mean drug addicts are mentally ill? Mentally defective? Just weak?

IDK, but am inclined to think that any self-destructive behavior is irrational.
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That's a good point.

There is a certain rationality to Cypher's choice. He thought it was better to live a comfortable and luxurious fiction than a grim and dangerous reality. What turned him into an antagonist was the cynical willingness to betray and kill people.

I'd like to think most people would choose truth and knowledge over fiction and ignorance. But then we have to explain away things like FOX and the tangerine Messiah.
 
Cypress said:
That's a good point.

There is a certain rationality to Cypher's choice. He thought it was better to live a comfortable and luxurious fiction than a grim and dangerous reality. What turned him into an antagonist was the cynical willingness to betray and kill people.

I'd like to think most people would choose truth and knowledge over fiction and ignorance. But then we have to explain away things like FOX and the tangerine Messiah.
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It's been well over a decade since I've seen the movie, but, IMO, he's no better than a heroin addict with access to unlimited heroin. His willingness to betray and kill others is drug addict desperation.

Agreed most people, at least the sane and brave ones, would prefer reality over fantasy.
 
Commander Dutch said:
When you can cite a quote proving it, maybe some people will believe you are more than just a psychotic wannabe mass murderer who associates with white supremacists and seeks to violently overthrow the US government.
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He's not you, Sybil.
DON'T TRY TO BLAME THE VIOLENCE OF DEMOCRATS OR YOUR MENTAL PROBLEM ON ANYBODY ELSE, SYBIL!
 
2. Contact (1997) - Jodie Foster and Matthew McConaughey

PERSONAL EXPERIENCE VERSUS SCIENTIFIC REASONING

Despite the fact that Contact is clearly critical of close-minded religious fundamentalists like the evangelical spokesman Richard Rank, the film clearly defends the thesis that science and religion are compatible.

Ellie’s love interest in the film is Palmer Joss, a reverend who says that his belief in God is justified by a vivid religious experience. He was looking into the sky, felt a presence, and knew “it was God”—that he wasn’t alone. Ellie initially dismisses his experience as wishful thinking.

In the end, however, Ellie ends up doing just what Palmer did: trusting her own experience, even though she openly admits that it’s more likely a result of wishful thinking.

Palmer’s last line in the film has him saying that he believes Ellie’s experience was legitimate. But if Ellie is justified in believing she visited aliens based on her own personal experience, isn’t Palmer justified in believing in God based on his personal experience?


The moral lesson of Contact—a story written by the agnostic Carl Sagan—seems to be that belief in God can be justified, even for those that are scientifically minded. But this moral lesson is true only if Ellie actually is justified in believing her own personal experience above and beyond the simpler scientific explanation.



source credit: David Kyle Johnson, PhD, Kings College
 
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