The New Electronic World

The New Electronic World

Cyberspace has become a reality of everyday life. People across the world spend significant amounts of time and effort in the construction, maintenance, and innovation of the Internet. This advancement has created two classes: those who are in control of this new culture and those who are left behind. The fact also remains that there will always be a negative aspect for every positive one. The Internet has shown us technology at its zenith and at the same time, the perverted reflection of our society.

The Matrix portrays the future of our world in the way of its innovators, one group abusing the power to enslave another. In this case, the Internet advances through the direction of people intending to utilize the power for self-centered purposes. The end result is a world in which a virtual environment was created within the minds of an imprisoned class of people. There are many theories regarding the Internet today and whether it is actually providing benefit to our world, or causing more problems than its worth. The more we progress the more others, it seems, are left behind.

The Internet truly has its positive aspects. From instant information at ones fingertips to the ability to communicate across the world at the cost of a local phone call, one can easily argue that the Internet has improved our world. But as in many cases, the negative aspects of a modern innovation are more easily exploited by those who consciously or not, are destroying our environment. The access to pornography, the computer viruses damaging corporate business, and the hacking that virtual thugs find humorous are all examples of abuse that create a more negative viewpoint of the Internet.

The Matrix takes this theory...

... middle of paper ...

... An addiction rarely can be identified until it is too late.

While the theory of The Matrix was a complex one, and at times, quite unbelievable, certainly there are those who have become too reliant on the Internet for the bare essentials of life. It is true the Internet is an incredible tool for sharing information, researching truths, and conducting business, however, it is also true that the Internet is often used as a replacement for reality. These groups of people are the ones who are in danger of becoming the drones as described in the movie. These are the people that are in danger of one day waking up and realizing that they live in a world they do not truly know.

Works Cited

Rheingold, Howard. The Heart of the WELL. Composing Cyberspace. Ed. Richard Holeton. Boston: McGraw Hill, 1998.

Andy and Larry Wachowski. The Matrix. Warner Bros. 1999.