Liberation and Oppression

Paper Summary:

This paper discusses the following five themes of liberation in oppression in the film, "The Matrix": 1) dehumanization vs. remaining human, 2) the student-teacher relationship, 3) identifying with the oppressor, 4) learning as liberation, and 5) the liberation of dialogic man. The characters, their relationships with each other, and aspects of the plot pertinent to the exploration of these themes are discussed and analyzed.

From the Paper:

"The Matrix postulates a world, after it has been conquered by an alien force, that leaves behind computers to run the world. It is never clear what the aliens get out of this arrangement, but the filmmakers obviously do not care to raise the issue. They instead tell the story from the point of view of a small group of humans who discover the truth--that their bodies are stored and that the world they believe they see, touch, taste, feel, and hear is only a computer simulation fed to their brains. They liberate their bodies and then tap into this computer simulation from their own vantage point, making use of their knowledge to perform feats that would be considered fantastic in the real world but that are possible when you know the world is only an illusion."

More papers on Liberation and Oppression:

• Research Paper # 50457 : "Women in the National Liberation Struggle"
• Book Review # 121831 : "Marx and the Bible"
• Essay # 45555 : "The Oppression and/or Liberation of Women in Drama"

APA Citation:

MLA Citation: