Analyzing Morpheus as a Socratic Figure in “The Matrix” Research Paper

Chosen Scene Description

The movie scene selected for analysis is Neo’s first encounter with Morpheus in the Lafayette Hotel. In it, Neo greets his new teacher, and Morpheus explains the existence of the ubiquitous Matrix and enslavement to the man. He offers Neo two pills that enable humans to explore reality or forget the conversation and stay unaware of reality (Wachowski & Wachowski, 1999). Neo responds to Morpheus’s first suggestion and wakes up in fear and disbelief, but Morpheus assures him that he is not dead.

How Morpheus Is a Socratic Figure and Similar to Socrates

Image of World

Morpheus’s and Socrates’s truths are similar in various aspects, which makes the former a Socratic figure. Morpheus is a Socratic thinker due to his readiness to teach others and help them examine their feelings critically and logically. The latter is seen in the selected scene, with Morpheus recognizing Neo’s lifelong intuitive guess that the world is not what it seems and offering him a valid explanation of it (Wachowski & Wachowski, 1999). Socrates assumes that truth lies within “the idea of the Good,” which is the last and the most challenging discovery for humanity (Plato, 2016, p. 8). Morpheus’s speech aimed at Neo references this difficult discovery as he anticipates Neo to make his own choices whether to explore the true image of the world or stay in a soothing illusion.

Understanding of Truth

The movie character’s concept of truth resembles the philosopher’s understanding due to referring to something hidden. Socrates explains that there can be false “truth,” which is “nothing more” than the distorted reflections of the actual objects (Plato, 2016, p. 3). As per Morpheus’s narratives in the scene, truth is something absolute and concealed from an average human being with the help of the illusory world (Wachowski & Wachowski, 1999). As the examples suggest, Morpheus’s conceptualizations of truth are similar to Socrates’s understanding due to connecting true objects and ideas to something that should be unveiled and does not exist at a surface level. In other words, both thinkers treat truth as an a priori hidden or unobvious knowledge.

Examining Life

Morpheus’s “teachings” about the Matrix share some common points with Socrates’s thoughts concerning the examined life. Among Socrates’s unique contributions to Western philosophy’s development is his existential question pertaining to the ultimate meaning of living or existing as a human being (Pierce College Staff, n.d.). Morpheus teaches Neo that the Matrix is something that one can see, touch, and feel instead of the real world and that effectively hides the truth from the observer and should be seen in person to be understood. Morpheus’s perspective is superficially similar to Socrates’s point on the need to live an examined life since not doing so is not a worthy way of existence (Plato, n.d.; Wachowski & Wachowski, 1999). The philosopher taught it to the Athenians, and Morpheus’s key follower was Neo. The similarity is that both teachings put emphasis on eliciting a desire to explore the actual world and look behind the curtain in their respective audiences.

Self-Sacrifice

Morpheus’s key sacrifice is seen only after the selected scene as he risks his life to keep Neo safe, which poses barriers to adequate comparisons between him and Socrates. Socrates’s sacrifice for being able to propagate his beliefs and teach disciples was his life as he was believed to spread disrespect towards recognized authorities among the youth, thus committing a crime (Pierce College Staff, n.d.).

Nevertheless, in the chosen scene, Morpheus’s self-sacrificing attitude is visible from how easily he shares secret information on the Matrix with Neo despite not knowing if he is actually reliable (Wachowski & Wachowski, 1999). An increasing number of people aware of the Matrix might create troubles for him, but his assumptions regarding the importance of awakening are apparently strong enough to ignore the risks. It might be similar to how the philosopher shared his beliefs in their entirety with his disciples despite the dangers of being reported or even betrayed.

References

Pierce College Staff. (n.d.). The way forward [Video]. Web.

Plato. (2016). The allegory of the cave (S. Eyer, Trans.). Plumbstone Books. Web.

Plato. (n.d.). Apology(B. Jowett, Trans.). The Internet Classics Archive. Web.

Wachowski, L., & Wachowski, L. (1999). The matrix [Film]. Warner Bros.