Biblical References of the Matrix
In their film, The Matrix, Andy and Larry Wachowski have included many literary allusions and symbols to enhance the appeal of this groundbreaking science fiction film. As incredible as the special effects and cinematography are in this film, the Wachowski brothers have significantly bolstered the appeal of The Matrix by an elaborately constructed story spanning time and reality. These allusions and symbols include references from infamous writers such as Lewis Carol, Jung, John Bunyan and Descartes. However, the most meaningful and abundant references come from The Holy Bible.1
When the trailer for this film was first introduced to the public, many expected The Matrix to be just another science-fiction film with phenomenal special effects which lacked an intriguing plot. The majority of the reviews definitely put an end to this misconception. Most of the reviews written on this film eloquently complement the Wachowski brothers on their excellent story line. The Biblical references of this film incorporated with the phenomenal cinematography distinguish The Matrix from all other science-fiction films in which the main characters are on a race to save humanity. "The script, written by the Wachowski brothers is intelligent but carefully not geeky."2
The most obvious Biblical references of this film are that of the five main characters; Neo, Morpheus, Trinity, Cypher and Agent Smith. These characters are intended to represent the roles of Jesus Christ, John the Baptist, Mary Magdalene, Judas Iscariot and Pontius Pilate respectively. All of these biblical characters had major roles in the biblical story of Jesus’ sacrifice for humanity. The Wachowski brothers have done excel...
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...oud and triumphant. The next shot uses slow motion, showing that Neo is definitely "the one". He now possesses the ability to stop bullets. This scene uses phenomenal special effects, along with impressive cinematography
to reveal to the audience that Neo represents Jesus Christ.
The Wachowski brothers have made a number of references to The Holy Bible in their film, The Matrix. These references have eloquently enhanced the plot of this groundbreaking science fiction film. This film basically retells the story of Jesus Christ’s rise in The Holy Bible, including his supporters and the one who leads to his downfall, using modern science fiction appeal and special effects. Considering The Matrix is the first film of a trilogy, it will certainly be entertaining to see what the Wachowski brothers do next with Keanu Reeve’s science fiction, action-packed Christ figure.
The Matrix is a current movie and the Bible is a piece of inspired literature that has withstood scrutiny throughout the ages. The Matrix has many biblical themes and it parallels the Bible in numerous ways.
In one of Plato’s works called The Allegory of the Cave he goes over what it means to get higher knowledge and the path you have to take to get to this higher knowledge. Plato also goes over how this higher knowledge or enlightenment will affect people and how they act. He ties this all together through what he calls the cave. Plato tells Glaucon a sort of story about how the cave works and what the people within the cave have to do to get to the enlightenment. A while down the road the Wachowski siblings with the help of Warner Brothers Studios made a movie titled The Matrix. This movie follows the came concept that Plato does in the cave. With saying that the world that Neo (the main character) was living in was in fact not real but a made
This student of Philosophy now sees the movie The Matrix in a whole new way after gaining an understanding of some of the underlying philosophical concepts that the writers of the movie used to develop an intriguing and well thought out plot. Some of the philosophical concepts were clear, while others were only hinted at and most likely overlooked by those unfamiliar with those concepts, as was this student when the movie first came out in theaters all those many years ago. In this part of the essay we will take a look at the obvious and not so obvious concepts of: what exactly is the Matrix and how does it related to both Descartes and Plato, can we trust our own senses once we understand what the Matrix is, and how Neo taking the Red Pill is symbolic of the beginning of the journey out of Pl...
Kersten, Andrew E. "African Americans and World War II." Organization of American Historians Magazine of History. Organization of American Historians, n.d. Web.
The Matrix series is much more than an action-packed sci-fi thriller. After one view of this film for the second and third time, we start to notice a great deal of symbolism. This symbolism starts to paint a completely different picture than the images of humans battling machines. It is a religious story, with symbols deeply set in the Christian faith. The Matrix contains religious symbolism through its four main characters, Morpheus, Neo, Trinity and Cypher. In that each character personifies the “Father,” the “Son,” “Satan,” and the “Holy Spirit” of the Christian beliefs only shown through the amazing performances of the actors. A critic by the name of Shawn Levy said "The Matrix slams you back in your chair, pops open your eyes and leaves your jaw hanging slack in amazement."(metacritic.com)
On April 12th, 1861 Fort Sumter was assaulted by Confederate force marking the start to America’s bloodiest war and biggest tragedy. But throughout the bloodshed and gun smoke shone a light, the light of hope in every African American’s heart that they would win the battle and overcome slavery so every American, black or white could be free and be treated and viewed as equals. An America where skin color meant nothing and everyone could be what they wanted and have an equal chance at it. But for this wonderful light of hope to be achieved, African American had to play their part in the Civil War, and that they did.
World War I and World War II both had significant social, economic, and political impacts on the lives of African Americans and brought enormous change within American society. Many African Americans viewed the war as an opportunity to fight for their country in exchange for equal citizenship rights at home. Unfortunately this was achieved through neither WWI nor WWII despite the irony of the US fighting a war for democracy abroad when discrimination existed on the home front. The central themes explored in which African American lives have been touched by the World wars are migration, military segregation, racial violence and political power. It is evident that although WWI and WWII did not amount to the momentous leap forward that African Americans desired in the pre-war years, the events undoubtedly had profound impacts on the lives of African Americans and ultimately paved the way for the Civil rights movement.
Sigmund Freud was first to take notice toward personality. “Like all of us, Sigmund Freud was a product of his times” (Myers 454). Freud took notice to a sequence of repetition within his patients. Freud had a large impact on psychology, history, and literary studies, however his most essential commitment was to focus on the unconscious mind. “In Freud’s view, human personality-including its emotions and striving- arises from a conflict between impulse and restraint-between our aggressive, pleasure- seeking biological urges and our internalized social controls over these urges” (Myers 455). His patients were experiencing a series of free association, which is also known as a state of unconsciousness. Freud explored unconscious with consciousness experience. The thought that individuals presented other reasons other than those they professed in earlier stages in time. “Freud’s
She achieve her dream of becoming a lawyer and a writer, she learned French and completed accelerated courses in biology. Michelle Obama went to attend Whitney M. Young Magnet High School, it was the city’s first magnet high school for kids, had many activities, she was the student government treasurer. In 1981, Michelle graduated from that school as class salutatorian and she also wanted to follow her big brother footsteps, She attended Princeton University, graduating cum laude in 1985, and went on to earn a degree from Harvard Law School in 1988. Following her graduation from Harvard, she worked at a Chicago law firm, took part in demonstrations demanding for more minority students and professions. She was awarded her J.D in
World War II was a time African Americans were given the chance to show the whites that they were as equal as them and could play a big part in this war. The military would give the white people who were unemployed jobs in the military, before hiring any African Americans (Hines, 2014). The unemployment rate for the blacks increased and they figured entering the draft would help them escape this racial madness. They looked at this moment as an opportunity. Segregation was still going on and black equality was still being driven. The whites were still making it well known to the blacks that they were still not equal. Many African Americans that actually served during this war were actually expanding their knowledge and learning new skills as
In the early 1900s, the American South had very distinctive social classes: African Americans, poor white farmers, townspeople, and wealthy aristocrats. This unique class system is reflected in William Faulkner’s novel, As I Lay Dying. The Bundrens are a poor, white family, on a quest to bury the now deceased Addie in the town of Jefferson. Taking a Marxist criticism approach to As I Lay Dying, readers will notice how Faulkner’s use of characterization reveals how country folk are looked down upon by the wealthy, upper class.
The Matrix, directed by the Wachowski brothers, a film about the journey of Neo discovering the real and simulation world, revolves around how he is “The One” destined to save mankind. As critics may say that The Matrix is either an action packed movie containing philosophy or a philosophical movie containing action, critics also miss the fact that it could possibly be considered as a religious themed movie because it contains a plethora of Biblical references, such as symbolic evidence. In Gregory Bassham’s article, “The Religion of The Matrix and Problems of Pluralism”, he discusses how the film contains Christian themes, non-Christian themes, and lastly, religious pluralism. The rhetorical
Black Americans began to protest the discrimination going on in the military that eventually led to the beginning of military desegregation. Black officers, the press, and civil rights leaders would voice their messages about African American troops and the War Department produced a propaganda film. This film, The Negro Soldier, “emphasized the contributions black soldiers had made in the nation’s wars since the American Revolution and was designed to appeal to both black and white audiences” (pg.
...The Matrix” and Plato’s “The Allegory of the Cave” almost gives the idea that the movies writers may have had a lot of influence from Plato’s allegory. The creation of this movie gives and futuristic prospective of “The Allegory of the Cave” letting the people who have seen the movie think about reality and the truth. In conclusion, Plato’s story of the cave brings up many philosophical points and most significantly, addresses the topic of society’s role in our lives. On some level, we are all influenced by the thoughts and actions of everyone else, but at the same time, we as humans have the ability to question, make our own conclusions, and finally make our own choices.
The Matrix is a sci-fi action film about a computer hacker named Neo that has been brought into another world deemed “the matrix.” The Matrix is a prime example of cinematography. The film uses many different types of cinematography such as mise-en-scene, special effects, and camera shots to make it interesting and entertaining to the audience guiding their attention to the important aspects of the film.