Science Fiction and The Matrix Effect

Science Fiction and Neo’s Reality!

In the science fiction, They Loved in 2075, there is a moment when the main character Saabir witnesses a real rose along with his girlfriend. In his clan and that of his girlfriend’s clan, Rose is mentioned in the old folktales and stories narrated by the elders of the clan to the younger generation. And none of them has ever seen or touched a real Rose. Saabir is the first person, perhaps on the Earth in 2075 the only fortunate one, to witness a real Rose. It is an enriching emotional moment for him, but he is surprised to realise that his girlfriend did not feel anything. Nothing at all! 

“Is she emotionally sterile or has she lost the ability to feel strong emotions?” Wonders Saabir as he turns towards her and sees her standing in a state of emotional numbness next to a live specimen of the rose. The rose had failed to cast its magical spell on Saabir’s girlfriend or she was unable to react, because she was caught in the stillness of this beautiful moment while being unable to react. And it was so for many reasons. 

Which Saabir as her lover ought to understand if he were to invoke the feeling of love in her. Well, to know whether he succeeded in accomplishing this mission or he got too preoccupied pursuing his quest to save the Earth; and prevent his clan and the StarLight clan from becoming extinct. You will have to read the science fiction, They Loved in 2075. Where the spell is cast by the Rose but only experienced by Saabir and not his girlfriend.

But why should you read this science fiction?

I consider every well written science fiction a spell casting work of an experienced writer’s powerful imagination, where the reader is constantly pulled into its magical essence. That is intellectually provocative, while being seductive enough to retain the reader’s attention, allowing him/her to imagine a world of scientific wonders. Where there is only one dominant possibility: That with the application of right logic anything is possible. This is what I call a believable science fiction, capable of marrying a dream-like world with a world that rises higher and becomes more prominent as it establishes its link with surreal realism. Almost like the experiences of Neo, who conquers the falsehood of pseudo reality and manages to establish a link with reality that is not a mere visual perception, or a feeling experienced at sensory level, but it is something where the subject and the object are not separated by a void of perceptions and a streak of never ceasing desires. It lies encircled within a free will that emerges from human mind and heart, and then rushes forth to confront all senses which in the actual reality translate into just two outputs: Happiness or Agony. 

And that is where the void between the virtual reality and actual reality becomes evident, because in virtual reality the output is not dependent upon these two important entities of human emotion. In the virtual world, where everything is a pseudo creation of perceptions, beliefs, aesthetics, motion, and other properties that define life, the subject may not necessarily be subjected to experiencing happiness or agony, because in the virtual reality, the subject can also be the object, and object can be the subject as well. Which is not the case in actual reality, because the subject and object are always assertively defined, at least our minds are trained to perceive it that way.  

Take for example Saabir’s girlfriend who is looking at the beautiful Rose, but is unable to generate an emotional response, due to her excessive dependency on machines and technology. And in this situation the spell casting Rose is the subject, and the emotionally numb girlfriend of Saabir is the object. She is so for Saabir in that situation. 

But when we refer to a similar situation in virtual reality, for which Neo’s character in the movie titled Matrix, is the best example. Neo is almost always treated as an object, and at times he feels like a subject, but this is merely a perception of his mind, influenced by virtual reality. And this minute detail is what needs to be understood when differentiating between the real and the virtual. And let us not forget about the red pill.

YouTube reference

A well researched science fiction, almost always manages to tell the virtual apart from the real. And for the sake of literary eloquence allows the free will of the reader to decide and tell the difference, or make the reader believe that he/she is still in command of his/her free will. 

There are many science fiction novels that introduce the readers’ minds to unheard of scientific concepts, but the sci-fi writer always creates a logical world around every concept in order to support his/her claim. The world that the science fiction authors create is always meant to support the scientific ideas they wish to present to the readers, and through them to the world. 

You still do not seem convinced. Perhaps you are thinking how Neo could get transported into a different world via a telephone cable. Am I correct?

Well the answer is simple. In the world created to support the innovative concepts brought forth in the famed movie The Matrix. There are scenes in the movie that refer to the atomic identity of human beings, which is unique to every individual. And when you summate a human being based on this unique atomic composition, it is possible to transport a human via anything capable of carrying atoms without distorting the atomic uniqueness associated with every individual. That is how Neo gets transferred to the other world, where he encounters the villain, and the villain presents himself before Neo with his multiple avatars encircling Neo. What is fascinating about these avatars is their composition. They are not photon reflections or 3D holograms. But they are actual human clones of the same person. Now is that possible? Yes, we all know about human cloning. It can also be achieved by knowing the unique atomic configuration of an individual. If we copy this unique atomic configuration, I am sure we can create many Neos as well. 

Now that's what I call a riddle trapped within an enigma!

And when a reader experiences the logical spell of a well written science fiction, he/she experiences infinity of reality. Where Matrix always works in favour of Neo. And grants him the freedom to assume the role of an object and experience the pain, and also feel the emotional graphs of a subject and experience the joy. It could be​​ contrariwise as well, because in reality even entities which are abstract have the ability to express their free will. So what might be an object in a certain situation may assume every quality of being a subject in another situation. But in the fake and virtually created reality, these roles of subject and object are dictated by the will of someone else, who himself/herself is living in a reality where he/she is subject to the forces of actual reality. This might sound a bit confusing here so let me elaborate on this point by making a few references.

I am sure most of you have read the science fiction, The Dune. Where 3 clans are keen to possess ultimate control over the desert planet Arrakis where the magical spice Melange is produced by the larvae of the giant worms. But there is a very important point raised by the author when the ecologist who takes the duke and his son out to the desert to test the efficiency of their body suits. During a brief conversation someone raises a very important point, “do the giant worms for their survival depend on the magical spice?” And the ecologist pauses for a moment and then answers, “Who knows. They may or may not.”

And the fact is, the giant worms fiercely protect their territories, since their larvae produce the spice, the territories the worms defend, are mostly around the regions where the spice is found. And for obvious reasons. Therefore the worms cause disruptions in the mining operations because their survival as a species depends on the safety of the larvae. But for the Duke, the giant worms are nothing more than a perennial object, who ought to be exterminated if his clan has to be prosperous.

So it will not be wrong to say that the never ending strife between the subject and object is a part of every reality. Whether virtual or actual reality.

Now let us consider Neo from the Matrix. Does he have the choice to be whatever he likes to be? No! Because in the virtual reality, his free will is a prisoner of someone else's will, so he is the perennially hapless object, who cannot alter this status as long as he does not master the way to escape from the virtual reality. And this is the situational and unavoidable irony Neo has to deal with. And learn via his experiences:

“Reality is that which, when you stop believing in it, does not go away. But virtual reality is that which, when you stop believing in it, does go away.” 

But believing in either scenario is not easy, only one in a million can achieve it. And as we all, science fiction lovers know, Neo in the end, with some help from intelligent and sensitive people, does learn how to believe, and change roles between being an agony consumed object and a protagonist subject, that he seldom managed to be. But when he did, he did it well and stayed true to the spell of an authentic science fiction, where anything is possible. Except one thing, Miracle.

In the end Neo too makes a choice

Because a true science fiction relies heavily on logic, scientific probing and a lot of calculations. That is why Neo took so long to realise the actual reality.

Again referring to the spell of science fiction, there are moments when the reader’s free will questions the author’s situational creation, because his/her logic clashes with the concept. So, shall we believe the spell has lost its influence over the reader’s interest, and when that happens the reader loses his/her ability to cope with the highly inventive mind of the author. Not really, that is not the case. 

It is just that the reader and author have entered into a rare but often unavoidable collision of interests, where the reader denies being the object and the author, via his/her concept that has somehow contradicted the logical IQ of the reader , insists on being the subject. But in this moment too, reality prevails, and allows the reader continue reading further while maintaining his/her denial of the concept which does not sit well with his/her logical understanding. And on the other hand, it also allows the author, who at the moment is interacting with the reader via a medium where he is not involved directly; ( book, movie, digital interface etc. ) the author is hypothetically forced to accept this denial without causing any alteration to his/her concept. Because in this case the science fiction novel, movie, ebook etc. is a Neo like object, which cannot escape the reality of the reader, as long as the reader has not concluded reading the entire plot. This is the beauty of science fiction novels. Where the dual is always fought between the author's ability to be the master of both entities i.e. subject and object, and on the other hand the reader exercises his/her free will to challenge this arrangement, and be who he/she prefers to be. But the masters of science fiction like: Isaac Asimov, Robert A, Arthur C. Clarke always let their objective goal of the science fiction prevail over the reader’s free will, without even offering the slightest clue to the reader that they were living a real moment in the virtual reality of eloquently placed words, that left the reader completely charmed.

But then, this is the beauty of reading an authentic science fiction, and yet, not feeling imprisoned like Neo did. It is this reality that even though inescapable, becomes the readers’ escape into a moment of intellectual freedom where his/her thoughts are able to tune in with scientific concepts that are brave and challenging. 

The science fiction, They Loved in 2075, offers a similar reading experience and by means of intellectual engagement with the book, you realise your responsibility towards the Earth and your role to preserve it, if we as a species are to survive and fulfil our dream of someday living among the stars. The sci-fi novel, They loved in 2075 offers you the objective and subjective freedom as well, letting you be the Neo who is free to escape anytime, but I promise you, you will stay there in 2075, both as a reader and as Neo as well. But, in order to experience it, you will have to read and understand how “They Loved in 2075!”