This is a thread to discuss the deeper meaning of the Matrix Trilogy. Id like to start this off with an essay i wrote for English class. I wrote it with a partner named Dhruv, but I mostly did it by myself. Please read it its worth a crapload of points and i could use some feed back. I know its a little rough but its not totaly done. Here it is
Spoiler:
The matrices of Greek mythology: a comparative essay on the Matrix and Greek mythology
Writers note:
The Matrix is ambiguity. It contradicts it self over and over, yet there are some persistent themes that are generally consistent through out all three movies. Due to the vast deepness of the matrix, we are not able to explore its entire cannon, however; Greek mythology is one aspect that plays heavily into the Matrix, and its characters. The Matrix trilogy, like this essay, is layered with certain references and ties that takes multiple viewings to really understand. Read this essay carefully because the wording, like the Matrix, is intentional and made to make you think. Dhruv and I feel that it is not our job to reveal the whole essay to you, but for you to explore it, and its deeper meaning.
The Matrix is filled with ties to Greek and Roman mythology; from obvious ones, like the Oracle, to subtler ones like Niobe. Not only are characters connected to counterparts in mythology, but also some motifs and themes of Epics, tragedies, and mythology in general are present in the Matrix. One of the quintessential questions especially prevalent in The Odyssey, is fate and is it real? Is what the Merovingian says is true that “Choice is just an illusion created by those with power and those without,” does Poseidon really control Odysseus, or is fate dooming him to not reach Ithaca? Although some may argue Odysseus exile was the sum of his actions, you can argue that Poseidon, who, as a god, has real power, dooms Odysseus to a life of exile, but in all reality it truly is fate that killed Eurydice, made Neo fall in love, and it was fate that Odysseus had to suffer over a decade away from Ithaca.
One of the main themes in both mythology and the matrix is fate. In Greek mythology a trinity of goddesses known as the Moirai controlled fate. Each spun a man’s fate at his birth. Although Zeus, and other gods could change fate, they never did because it would imbalance the equation of life. Fate is played is a very similar role in the Matrix. ON many occasions, such as when all of the captains met at the start of Reloaded, Morpheus has said one action is caused by fate. According to the architect Neo has a path, as the One, that he must walk. It is his destiny to return to the source, save 23 people, and rebuild Zion, however; his love for Trinity stops him from doing so, and he runs off to save her. Neo, a man who has true power in his ability to change the matrix, chose to deviate from his path, and alter what was to his true destiny. This same action, although caused by rage not love, can be seen in Poseidon’s role in the Odyssey. Odysseus should have left Troy and went straight home, instead; Poseidon messed with his fate and doomed him to a long and hard journey home. “As you so eloquently put it, Neo, the problem is choice,” said the architect before Neo ran off to save Trinity; People in power have the free will to change their fate, but most choose not to. Although clearly the characters in the Matrix and in Mythology understand that they can change their ‘fate’ they fail to do so. Instead they choose to scream at the gods, go destroy machines till they feel they are compensated for what wrongdoings have been done to them.
This feeling of somebody wronging you just because they are more powerful is also an early strong theme. In the beginning of the Odyssey kings, other than Odysseus urge the captains to stay behind any pray to the gods. They feel that they owe the gods for their great victory, and fear the god’s wraith if they don’t make sacrifices to them. Odysseus, in either a moment of hubris, or in a deep sorrow for not seeing Ithaca, decides to start to sail right away. Punishment for this comes in the form of almost of a decade lost at sea, but is this warranted? It depends of your beliefs on fate. Poseidon gets made because Odysseus wont thank him for helping the Greeks win the war, but did the Greeks really win because that was their fate? No, because Poseidon knows that he is stronger than fate, and he could have stopped the Greeks from ever getting to Troy, so it is not all fate that allowed the Greeks to win. Therefore it was Odysseus’ duty to honor Poseidon, and Odysseus has no right to be mad. This same motif occurs multiple times through out the Matrix. The whole concept of the humans being mad at the machines follows the same motif. The machines really aren’t doing anything that is that bad. In fact they treat the humans quite humanely. For example, they don’t kill humans early, or prolong their life for energy, but let people die when they really died in the matrix. And after their death, the dead are not just burned in heaps, like the humans did to the machines during the Animatrix, but are processed, and used as food for the others. The machines went so far as to attempt to create a perfect world for the humans, but it failed. They then created a new matrix which, with the exception of Neo, is a perfect example of their past. It is so real that there is no way to discern that its fake unless you have been ‘unplugged.’ The people also hate machines because there using them as batteries, which was the humans fault. The Animatrix shows us that the machines needed solar power to survive, and the humans blacked out the sky to destroy the machines. If the humans hadn’t done this, then the machines would never had to grow the humans for energy. The greatest reason that the humans hate the machines is because they feel as though the machines are taking away their freedom. This is ridiculous because to someone jacked in the matrix is real. The machines didn’t have to create a matrix, they just had some sense of humanity in them and decided to allow almost all people to have a reality as perfect as it can be.
Another quite apparent tie to Greek mythology is the names of characters. Morpheus, Niobe and the Oracle all have counter parts in Greek mythology. Clearly the Oracle is a direct link to the Oracle at Delphi. So close is are they that we argue that they are the same people. The oracle is one of the most ambiguous characters in the Matrix, and often is the source of confusion in perceiving the deeper meaning. What fascinates many people about the oracle is what she says, and how she says it. The Oracle, like the architect tells people what they need to hear to follow her will. The Oracle says it to unbalance the Matrix, as opposed to the Architect who’s sole purpose is to balance the world. She speaks in riddle, using odd language that is quite vague. When she sees neo for the first time in the 7th cycle, she tells him that either Neo or morpheus must die, but what does that mean? Is it a physical death, mental, psychological? Another interesting parallel to the Oracle at Delphi is the importance on knowing thyself, and being thyself. The Oracle even goes so far as to put a sign of ‘know thyself’ on the inside of her kitchen. Outside of the temple of Delphi, n large, engraved letters was the saying “know thyself.” The Oracle puts a strong on emphasis on understanding and knowiung yourself. She says to Neo “You have already made the choice, now all you have to do is understand it.” The only way Neo could understand his choice was to understand himself, and who he was. In Antiquity priests at Delphi said that if you didn’t know yourself the oracle wouldn’t give you the right answer because you didn’t know the right question. Like at Delphi the oracle, as Morpheus put it, “She is not all knowing, but she knows enough.” What he is saying is that the Oracle might not know how something might happen, but she knows why and what will happen. This parallels the Oracle at Delphi because the oracle at Delphi only knew enough. It was believed that Apollo spoke through her, and Apallo knew almost everything. The Delphinian oracles were only allowed to know enough to fulfill the question. Although the amount of knowledge, which the Oracle in the Matrix knows is never truly revealed, we believe she only knows enough to make Neo do what she wants.
One of the most interesting ties is Morpheus. In many ways his role as a Greek god parallels his role as a captain of the Nebecennezer and contradicts that of the Morpheus while he is inside of the matrix. In Greek mythology Morephus is one of the god of dreams. Along with two siblings he delivers dreams to the entire world. He was the leader of the three and delivered dreams to the highest and most powerful people. He was able to appear in human-form in peoples dreams. Many times in the matrix he is seen as the man who brings others out of dreams, but out of the matrix he is often the inducer of dreams. A good portion of the beginning of the trilogy is all about Morpheus bringing Neo out of the ‘dream’ of the matrix. Morpheus brings Neo out of a ‘dream world,’ Cypher says, when neo starts to leave the matrix, ‘Dorothy is coming out of the rabbit hole.’ After neo is onboard the ship, and Morpheus is rebuilding his muscles; Neo wakes and Morpheus, seeing this, tells him to ‘relax, and let dreams to come to you.’ When Neo first sees the oracle she says something interesting “Morpheus is their leader and without him they are all lost.” Many philosophers in many ages have argued that without dreams we are all lost.
Niobe, captain of the LOGOS, shares the name with a character in Greek mythology. In Greek mythology Niboe, a mortal, bragged of her greatness to the gods. Although Niobe knew the gods were far superior she still challenged them, As punishment for this action all of her kids were killed. This parrelels Niobe’s journey th Reloaded and Enter the Matrix where she stands up against Commander Lock’s direct orders. Niobe goes against a superiors orders knowing full well Lock might strip her of her ship. The mission, which Lock did not want her to go on, ended with all of Niobe’s crew, being killed.
Neo, although the main character, is not as heavily related to Greek mythology. The most notable connection is his name. Neo is a Greek prefix meaning new, implying it is from an old version/incarnation of the same thing. Neo is exactly this; he is the 7th incarnation of an anomaly in an otherwise perfect, balanced dream world known as the matrix. The human brain couldn’t accept a perfect reality ergo they created a flaw, Neo. Because Neo is an anomaly he can manipulate the matrix like no other. The machines, especially the architect, were scared of Neo and his power so they created fate. They manipulated the Matrix and created certain programs so Neo could be controlled. The Oracle was created to lead Neo to a particular path. This path would lead him to saving 23 people, 7 males, 15 females, and rebuilding the recently destroyed Zion. This would allow for a destruction of all that was know to the humans, so they would have no records of what happened, and would have to start again. Neo would eventually die, and the cycle would start again with a new chosen one.
Writers note:
The Matrix is ambiguity. It contradicts it self over and over, yet there are some persistent themes that are generally consistent through out all three movies. Due to the vast deepness of the matrix, we are not able to explore its entire cannon, however; Greek mythology is one aspect that plays heavily into the Matrix, and its characters. The Matrix trilogy, like this essay, is layered with certain references and ties that takes multiple viewings to really understand. Read this essay carefully because the wording, like the Matrix, is intentional and made to make you think. Dhruv and I feel that it is not our job to reveal the whole essay to you, but for you to explore it, and its deeper meaning.
The Matrix is filled with ties to Greek and Roman mythology; from obvious ones, like the Oracle, to subtler ones like Niobe. Not only are characters connected to counterparts in mythology, but also some motifs and themes of Epics, tragedies, and mythology in general are present in the Matrix. One of the quintessential questions especially prevalent in The Odyssey, is fate and is it real? Is what the Merovingian says is true that “Choice is just an illusion created by those with power and those without,” does Poseidon really control Odysseus, or is fate dooming him to not reach Ithaca? Although some may argue Odysseus exile was the sum of his actions, you can argue that Poseidon, who, as a god, has real power, dooms Odysseus to a life of exile, but in all reality it truly is fate that killed Eurydice, made Neo fall in love, and it was fate that Odysseus had to suffer over a decade away from Ithaca.
One of the main themes in both mythology and the matrix is fate. In Greek mythology a trinity of goddesses known as the Moirai controlled fate. Each spun a man’s fate at his birth. Although Zeus, and other gods could change fate, they never did because it would imbalance the equation of life. Fate is played is a very similar role in the Matrix. ON many occasions, such as when all of the captains met at the start of Reloaded, Morpheus has said one action is caused by fate. According to the architect Neo has a path, as the One, that he must walk. It is his destiny to return to the source, save 23 people, and rebuild Zion, however; his love for Trinity stops him from doing so, and he runs off to save her. Neo, a man who has true power in his ability to change the matrix, chose to deviate from his path, and alter what was to his true destiny. This same action, although caused by rage not love, can be seen in Poseidon’s role in the Odyssey. Odysseus should have left Troy and went straight home, instead; Poseidon messed with his fate and doomed him to a long and hard journey home. “As you so eloquently put it, Neo, the problem is choice,” said the architect before Neo ran off to save Trinity; People in power have the free will to change their fate, but most choose not to. Although clearly the characters in the Matrix and in Mythology understand that they can change their ‘fate’ they fail to do so. Instead they choose to scream at the gods, go destroy machines till they feel they are compensated for what wrongdoings have been done to them.
This feeling of somebody wronging you just because they are more powerful is also an early strong theme. In the beginning of the Odyssey kings, other than Odysseus urge the captains to stay behind any pray to the gods. They feel that they owe the gods for their great victory, and fear the god’s wraith if they don’t make sacrifices to them. Odysseus, in either a moment of hubris, or in a deep sorrow for not seeing Ithaca, decides to start to sail right away. Punishment for this comes in the form of almost of a decade lost at sea, but is this warranted? It depends of your beliefs on fate. Poseidon gets made because Odysseus wont thank him for helping the Greeks win the war, but did the Greeks really win because that was their fate? No, because Poseidon knows that he is stronger than fate, and he could have stopped the Greeks from ever getting to Troy, so it is not all fate that allowed the Greeks to win. Therefore it was Odysseus’ duty to honor Poseidon, and Odysseus has no right to be mad. This same motif occurs multiple times through out the Matrix. The whole concept of the humans being mad at the machines follows the same motif. The machines really aren’t doing anything that is that bad. In fact they treat the humans quite humanely. For example, they don’t kill humans early, or prolong their life for energy, but let people die when they really died in the matrix. And after their death, the dead are not just burned in heaps, like the humans did to the machines during the Animatrix, but are processed, and used as food for the others. The machines went so far as to attempt to create a perfect world for the humans, but it failed. They then created a new matrix which, with the exception of Neo, is a perfect example of their past. It is so real that there is no way to discern that its fake unless you have been ‘unplugged.’ The people also hate machines because there using them as batteries, which was the humans fault. The Animatrix shows us that the machines needed solar power to survive, and the humans blacked out the sky to destroy the machines. If the humans hadn’t done this, then the machines would never had to grow the humans for energy. The greatest reason that the humans hate the machines is because they feel as though the machines are taking away their freedom. This is ridiculous because to someone jacked in the matrix is real. The machines didn’t have to create a matrix, they just had some sense of humanity in them and decided to allow almost all people to have a reality as perfect as it can be.
Another quite apparent tie to Greek mythology is the names of characters. Morpheus, Niobe and the Oracle all have counter parts in Greek mythology. Clearly the Oracle is a direct link to the Oracle at Delphi. So close is are they that we argue that they are the same people. The oracle is one of the most ambiguous characters in the Matrix, and often is the source of confusion in perceiving the deeper meaning. What fascinates many people about the oracle is what she says, and how she says it. The Oracle, like the architect tells people what they need to hear to follow her will. The Oracle says it to unbalance the Matrix, as opposed to the Architect who’s sole purpose is to balance the world. She speaks in riddle, using odd language that is quite vague. When she sees neo for the first time in the 7th cycle, she tells him that either Neo or morpheus must die, but what does that mean? Is it a physical death, mental, psychological? Another interesting parallel to the Oracle at Delphi is the importance on knowing thyself, and being thyself. The Oracle even goes so far as to put a sign of ‘know thyself’ on the inside of her kitchen. Outside of the temple of Delphi, n large, engraved letters was the saying “know thyself.” The Oracle puts a strong on emphasis on understanding and knowiung yourself. She says to Neo “You have already made the choice, now all you have to do is understand it.” The only way Neo could understand his choice was to understand himself, and who he was. In Antiquity priests at Delphi said that if you didn’t know yourself the oracle wouldn’t give you the right answer because you didn’t know the right question. Like at Delphi the oracle, as Morpheus put it, “She is not all knowing, but she knows enough.” What he is saying is that the Oracle might not know how something might happen, but she knows why and what will happen. This parallels the Oracle at Delphi because the oracle at Delphi only knew enough. It was believed that Apollo spoke through her, and Apallo knew almost everything. The Delphinian oracles were only allowed to know enough to fulfill the question. Although the amount of knowledge, which the Oracle in the Matrix knows is never truly revealed, we believe she only knows enough to make Neo do what she wants.
One of the most interesting ties is Morpheus. In many ways his role as a Greek god parallels his role as a captain of the Nebecennezer and contradicts that of the Morpheus while he is inside of the matrix. In Greek mythology Morephus is one of the god of dreams. Along with two siblings he delivers dreams to the entire world. He was the leader of the three and delivered dreams to the highest and most powerful people. He was able to appear in human-form in peoples dreams. Many times in the matrix he is seen as the man who brings others out of dreams, but out of the matrix he is often the inducer of dreams. A good portion of the beginning of the trilogy is all about Morpheus bringing Neo out of the ‘dream’ of the matrix. Morpheus brings Neo out of a ‘dream world,’ Cypher says, when neo starts to leave the matrix, ‘Dorothy is coming out of the rabbit hole.’ After neo is onboard the ship, and Morpheus is rebuilding his muscles; Neo wakes and Morpheus, seeing this, tells him to ‘relax, and let dreams to come to you.’ When Neo first sees the oracle she says something interesting “Morpheus is their leader and without him they are all lost.” Many philosophers in many ages have argued that without dreams we are all lost.
Niobe, captain of the LOGOS, shares the name with a character in Greek mythology. In Greek mythology Niboe, a mortal, bragged of her greatness to the gods. Although Niobe knew the gods were far superior she still challenged them, As punishment for this action all of her kids were killed. This parrelels Niobe’s journey th Reloaded and Enter the Matrix where she stands up against Commander Lock’s direct orders. Niobe goes against a superiors orders knowing full well Lock might strip her of her ship. The mission, which Lock did not want her to go on, ended with all of Niobe’s crew, being killed.
Neo, although the main character, is not as heavily related to Greek mythology. The most notable connection is his name. Neo is a Greek prefix meaning new, implying it is from an old version/incarnation of the same thing. Neo is exactly this; he is the 7th incarnation of an anomaly in an otherwise perfect, balanced dream world known as the matrix. The human brain couldn’t accept a perfect reality ergo they created a flaw, Neo. Because Neo is an anomaly he can manipulate the matrix like no other. The machines, especially the architect, were scared of Neo and his power so they created fate. They manipulated the Matrix and created certain programs so Neo could be controlled. The Oracle was created to lead Neo to a particular path. This path would lead him to saving 23 people, 7 males, 15 females, and rebuilding the recently destroyed Zion. This would allow for a destruction of all that was know to the humans, so they would have no records of what happened, and would have to start again. Neo would eventually die, and the cycle would start again with a new chosen one.
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