Happiness And Truth: Descartes: Happiness Or Truth?

Happiness or Truth? The extreme skepticism discussed in this essay is a mind-boggling concept, questioning reality and truth as we know them and removing the foundation of all that is ‘known’ to mankind forces people to consider everything in a different light. The conversations Socrates had with Glaucon in Plato’s, The Republic, Book VII, the thoughts that Descartes shared in Meditations on First Philosophy, and how The Matrix portrays a world where perceptions of reality are fed to the population through a computer, allow the reader to receive a well-rounded view of this topic. It also opens them up to question their biases and learn about themselves what they think they want in life, whether it be the ultimate truth or if they are willing

Plato is an exception in that he focuses more on the analogy rather than putting forth a real-world suggestion of this entity (Plato). Descartes, on the other hand, suggest two different possible controllers of the mind. The first being the mind itself creating a world around man, much like a dream world, the second he suggests is that a Deity, such as God controls the mind and detail of the ‘reality’ it lives in (Descartes). The Matrix, being a modern depiction of these previously discussed thoughts, portrays the controlling entity to be artificial intelligence with humanity living in a computer program (Wachowski & Wachowski). While differentiating in the literal controlling being, all three seem to boil it down to being a very powerful entity that is holding the minds of man in captivity and

It’s easy to assume that many would desire the knowledge and to choose freedom over known captivity. But, it’s also easy to see the opposing view, you are finally freed of the shackles of deceptions only to find yourself in a world with nothing familiar, no friends, no family no home, totally alone to start a new life. Now it’s possible that as in Socrates’s allegory this new world is beautiful and much better than your previous delusion thus completely worth giving up the fictions comforts of home (Plato). On the other hand, there is also a chance that you would end up in the same situation as Cypher, from The Matrix, knowing the truth but willing to do anything to forget it and return to a happier fantasy (Wachowski & Wachowski). In the end, man would be better to live a fantasy in which they ‘know’ happiness rather than on the chance that it’s better than their current