The Matrix and Philosophy

De: William Irwin, Editor

Narrado por: Oliver Wyman, Rick Adamson, Jennifer Jay Myers

The choice is yours, and you'll have to live with the consequences for at least the rest of your life. Will you take the blue pill - put this audiobook back and go on thinking of The Matrix as just a movie? Or will you take the red pill - listen to this book, and find out just how far down the rabbit-hole goes?

Is the world around us truly as it appears or are we inert bodies in tanks, our brains electronically stimulated to create a make-believe world which is all we know? This old philosophical puzzle has become cutting-edge cool with the appearance of the Keanu Reeves cult sci-fi movie, The Matrix.

The Matrix is the most philosophical film ever made, every step of its fast-paced plot pivoting on a philosophical conundrum. If the world as we know it is nothing more than our dream, does this make the dream real? If we had the choice to step out of our world into a more real but less pleasant one - to take the red pill - would it be a moral failure not to do so? Why do humans have a value above that of intelligent electronic mechanisms? Can the mind live without the body or the body without the mind?

In The Matrix and Philosophy, professional philosophers analyze The Matrix from many angles: metaphysical, epistemological, ethical, and aesthetic. They uncover hidden depths in this intricate work of art, and often reach disturbing conclusions. Those who take the red pill never look at 'the real world' the same way again.

The Matrix and Philosophy is also available in print from Open Court Books.

©2002
(P)2002 Random House, Inc.

Reseñas de la Crítica

"Whatever your philosophical cup of tea, The Matrix and Philosophy is your teahouse." (Lou Marinoff, author of Plato Not Prozac and Philosophical Practice)

An in depth philosophical analysis of The Matrix

An in depth philosophical analysis of The Matrix, that towards the end derails into an unhealthy feminist rant that sexualises anything and everything to suit the authors predisposition. Nonetheless I listened through it all.

I very much enjoyed the first few chapters. After that the book became quite repetitive with each essay overlapping the previous.

Way over my head

I love the Matrix, I love the plot behind it and understand that there is a lot that happens previous to the movies. I also understand that the philosphy behind it is very deep. This book was really interesting at first and then I just found it to drone on and on and on and on and .... zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz z z z z z z z z

Thought Provoking

This book consisted of multiple philosophy professionals giving their own personal views of how themes throughout the Matrix movie tie into the teachings of philosophy. Because of this "Multi-Author" format, some were better than others. The book links the scenes from the movie with anything from traditional Greek philosophy to feministic ideas of penetration in a male dominated world. Using parts of the movie as philosophy examples is a good way of introducing the subject to someone who may otherwise never get the opportunity to learn about it or even care about it for that matter. If you are the type that would like to think more profound thoughts than your grocery list or what's on TV tonight, then this book is for you.

Interesting but...

Interesting material, but the reading is rather flat, had trouble holding my attention.

Don’t bother

A bunch of boring essays tied together with quotes from the actual movie the matrix. Most of them are boring, overly wordy, and search for analogies and philosophies to try and make the movie relevant in a way that it isn’t. There are a few essays that are good, but the vast majority of it sucks. I found myself playing this audible book in the background when I wasn’t paying attention just so I could feel like I completed the entire thing. In reality, I should’ve just deleted it. It doesn’t do justice to the movie trilogy.