Diagnosing Contemporary Philosophy with the Matrix Movies

Diagnosing Contemporary Philosophy with the Matrix Movies

Author: O. Bradley Bassler

Publisher: Springer

Published: 2016-12-14

Total Pages: 215

ISBN-13: 1137578890

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This book charts the shape of future philosophical investigation by posing the question: “What is the Matrix?” Guided by the example of the Matrix film trilogy, the author examines issues ranging from simulation, proof and action to value, culture and mythology, offering a progressively deeper diagnosis of modern philosophical conditions. In contrast to the contemporary focus upon cognitive science and a commitment to the distinction between appearance and reality, this book helps readers to explore the argument that such abstractions are inevitably displaced by a more concrete distinction between dreaming and waking, with the Matrix as the real and only world we inhabit. Researchers and scholars will find this work an engaging and enlightening examination of reality, via the medium of popular culture and film.


Book Synopsis Diagnosing Contemporary Philosophy with the Matrix Movies by : O. Bradley Bassler

Download or read book Diagnosing Contemporary Philosophy with the Matrix Movies written by O. Bradley Bassler and published by Springer. This book was released on 2016-12-14 with total page 215 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book charts the shape of future philosophical investigation by posing the question: “What is the Matrix?” Guided by the example of the Matrix film trilogy, the author examines issues ranging from simulation, proof and action to value, culture and mythology, offering a progressively deeper diagnosis of modern philosophical conditions. In contrast to the contemporary focus upon cognitive science and a commitment to the distinction between appearance and reality, this book helps readers to explore the argument that such abstractions are inevitably displaced by a more concrete distinction between dreaming and waking, with the Matrix as the real and only world we inhabit. Researchers and scholars will find this work an engaging and enlightening examination of reality, via the medium of popular culture and film.

More Matrix and Philosophy

More Matrix and Philosophy

Author: William Irwin

Publisher: Popular Culture and Philosophy

Published: 2005

Total Pages: 248

ISBN-13:

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Explores how the "Matrix" movies deal with a variety of philosophical questions and issues, including cynicism, obfuscation, and postmodernist despair.


Book Synopsis More Matrix and Philosophy by : William Irwin

Download or read book More Matrix and Philosophy written by William Irwin and published by Popular Culture and Philosophy. This book was released on 2005 with total page 248 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Explores how the "Matrix" movies deal with a variety of philosophical questions and issues, including cynicism, obfuscation, and postmodernist despair.

The Topological Imagination

The Topological Imagination

Author: Angus Fletcher

Publisher: Harvard University Press

Published: 2016-04-04

Total Pages: 327

ISBN-13: 0674968867

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Boldly original and boundary defining, The Topological Imagination clears a space for an intellectual encounter with the shape of human imagining. Joining two commonly opposed domains, literature and mathematics, Angus Fletcher maps the imagination’s ever-ramifying contours and dimensions, and along the way compels us to re-envision our human existence on the most unusual sphere ever imagined, Earth. Words and numbers are the twin powers that create value in our world. Poetry and other forms of creative literature stretch our ability to evaluate through the use of metaphors. In this sense, the literary imagination aligns with topology, the branch of mathematics that studies shape and space. Topology grasps the quality of geometries rather than their quantifiable measurements. It envisions how shapes can be bent, twisted, or stretched without losing contact with their original forms—one of the discoveries of the eighteenth-century mathematician Leonhard Euler, whose Polyhedron Theorem demonstrated how shapes preserve “permanence in change,” like an aging though familiar face. The mysterious dimensionality of our existence, Fletcher says, is connected to our inhabiting a world that also inhabits us. Theories of cyclical history reflect circulatory biological patterns; the day-night cycle shapes our adaptive, emergent patterns of thought; the topology of islands shapes the evolution of evolutionary theory. Connecting literature, philosophy, mathematics, and science, The Topological Imagination is an urgent and transformative work, and a profound invitation to thought.


Book Synopsis The Topological Imagination by : Angus Fletcher

Download or read book The Topological Imagination written by Angus Fletcher and published by Harvard University Press. This book was released on 2016-04-04 with total page 327 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Boldly original and boundary defining, The Topological Imagination clears a space for an intellectual encounter with the shape of human imagining. Joining two commonly opposed domains, literature and mathematics, Angus Fletcher maps the imagination’s ever-ramifying contours and dimensions, and along the way compels us to re-envision our human existence on the most unusual sphere ever imagined, Earth. Words and numbers are the twin powers that create value in our world. Poetry and other forms of creative literature stretch our ability to evaluate through the use of metaphors. In this sense, the literary imagination aligns with topology, the branch of mathematics that studies shape and space. Topology grasps the quality of geometries rather than their quantifiable measurements. It envisions how shapes can be bent, twisted, or stretched without losing contact with their original forms—one of the discoveries of the eighteenth-century mathematician Leonhard Euler, whose Polyhedron Theorem demonstrated how shapes preserve “permanence in change,” like an aging though familiar face. The mysterious dimensionality of our existence, Fletcher says, is connected to our inhabiting a world that also inhabits us. Theories of cyclical history reflect circulatory biological patterns; the day-night cycle shapes our adaptive, emergent patterns of thought; the topology of islands shapes the evolution of evolutionary theory. Connecting literature, philosophy, mathematics, and science, The Topological Imagination is an urgent and transformative work, and a profound invitation to thought.

The Legitimacy of Poetic Reason

The Legitimacy of Poetic Reason

Author: O. Bradley Bassler

Publisher: Springer Nature

Published: 2022-09-26

Total Pages: 355

ISBN-13: 303112314X

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Many philosophical accounts of reason are geared toward providing rational justifications ex post facto rather than accounting for the role reason plays in actu in the process of creative work. Moreover, when in actu accounts of reason are given, they are usually too narrow to describe the sort of high-level creative work that is involved in the composition of poetry or the creation of a scientific theory. This book suggests that the rudiments of a broader account are found in various German Idealist figures, most notably the philosopher-novelist-critic Friedrich Schlegel and the philosophical poet and novelist Friedrich Hölderlin. However, German Idealism generally is subject to Hans Blumenberg ‘s secularization critique which provides a strong prima facie argument that the accounts of poetic reason suggested by Schlegel and Hölderlin are indefensible. This book argues that confronting Blumenberg’s secularization critique and his associated legitimation of modernity with a romantic conception of poetic reason requires revisions on both sides, and that the work of Lacan is especially well-suited to provide the conditions upon which a legitimation of poetic reason can be provided.


Book Synopsis The Legitimacy of Poetic Reason by : O. Bradley Bassler

Download or read book The Legitimacy of Poetic Reason written by O. Bradley Bassler and published by Springer Nature. This book was released on 2022-09-26 with total page 355 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Many philosophical accounts of reason are geared toward providing rational justifications ex post facto rather than accounting for the role reason plays in actu in the process of creative work. Moreover, when in actu accounts of reason are given, they are usually too narrow to describe the sort of high-level creative work that is involved in the composition of poetry or the creation of a scientific theory. This book suggests that the rudiments of a broader account are found in various German Idealist figures, most notably the philosopher-novelist-critic Friedrich Schlegel and the philosophical poet and novelist Friedrich Hölderlin. However, German Idealism generally is subject to Hans Blumenberg ‘s secularization critique which provides a strong prima facie argument that the accounts of poetic reason suggested by Schlegel and Hölderlin are indefensible. This book argues that confronting Blumenberg’s secularization critique and his associated legitimation of modernity with a romantic conception of poetic reason requires revisions on both sides, and that the work of Lacan is especially well-suited to provide the conditions upon which a legitimation of poetic reason can be provided.

Kant, Shelley and the Visionary Critique of Metaphysics

Kant, Shelley and the Visionary Critique of Metaphysics

Author: O. Bradley Bassler

Publisher: Springer

Published: 2018-05-15

Total Pages: 262

ISBN-13: 3319772910

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This book addresses the philosophy of Kant and the poetry of Shelley as historical starting points for a new way of thinking in the modern age. Fusing together critical philosophy and visionary poetry, Bassler develops the notion of visionary critique, or paraphysics, as a model for future philosophical endeavor. This philosophical practice is rooted in the concept of the indefinite power associated with the sublime in both Kant and Shelley’s work, to which the notion of the parafinite or indefinitely large is extended in this book.


Book Synopsis Kant, Shelley and the Visionary Critique of Metaphysics by : O. Bradley Bassler

Download or read book Kant, Shelley and the Visionary Critique of Metaphysics written by O. Bradley Bassler and published by Springer. This book was released on 2018-05-15 with total page 262 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book addresses the philosophy of Kant and the poetry of Shelley as historical starting points for a new way of thinking in the modern age. Fusing together critical philosophy and visionary poetry, Bassler develops the notion of visionary critique, or paraphysics, as a model for future philosophical endeavor. This philosophical practice is rooted in the concept of the indefinite power associated with the sublime in both Kant and Shelley’s work, to which the notion of the parafinite or indefinitely large is extended in this book.

Like a Splinter in Your Mind

Like a Splinter in Your Mind

Author: Matt Lawrence

Publisher: Wiley-Blackwell

Published: 2004-07-16

Total Pages: 236

ISBN-13: 9781405125239

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Book Synopsis Like a Splinter in Your Mind by : Matt Lawrence

Download or read book Like a Splinter in Your Mind written by Matt Lawrence and published by Wiley-Blackwell. This book was released on 2004-07-16 with total page 236 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

The Matrix and Philosophy

The Matrix and Philosophy

Author: William Irwin

Publisher: Open Court Publishing

Published: 2002

Total Pages: 300

ISBN-13: 9780812695014

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Presents essays exploring the philosophical themes of the motion picture "The Matrix," which portrays a false world created from nothing but perceptions.


Book Synopsis The Matrix and Philosophy by : William Irwin

Download or read book The Matrix and Philosophy written by William Irwin and published by Open Court Publishing. This book was released on 2002 with total page 300 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Presents essays exploring the philosophical themes of the motion picture "The Matrix," which portrays a false world created from nothing but perceptions.

Adapting philosophy

Adapting philosophy

Author: Catherine Constable

Publisher: Manchester University Press

Published: 2013-01-18

Total Pages: 236

ISBN-13: 1847798039

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Adapting Philosophy looks at the ways in which The Matrix Trilogy adapts Jean Baudrillard’s Simulacra and Simulation, and in doing so creates its own distinctive philosophical position. Where previous work in the field has presented the trilogy as a simple ‘beginner’s guide’ to philosophy, this study offers a new methodology for inter-relating philosophy and film texts, focusing on the conceptual role played by imagery in both types of text. This focus on the figurative enables a new-found appreciation of the liveliness of philosophical writing and the multiple philosophical dimensions of Hollywood films. The book opens with a critical overview of existing philosophical writing on The Matrix Trilogy and goes on to draw on adaptation theory and feminist philosophy in order to create a new methodology for interlinking philosophical and filmic texts. Three chapters are devoted to detailed textual analyses of the films, tracing the ways in which the imagery that dominates Baudrillard’s writing is adapted and transformed by the trilogy’s complex visuals and soundtrack. The conclusion situates the methodology developed throughout the book in relation to other approaches currently emerging in the new field of Film-Philosophy. The book’s multi-disciplinary approach encompasses Philosophy, Film Studies and Adaptation Theory and will be of interest to undergraduates and postgraduates studying these subjects. It also forms part of the developing interdisciplinary field of Film-Philosophy. The detailed textual analyses of The Matrix Trilogy will also be of interest to anyone wishing to deepen their understanding of the multi-faceted nature of this seminal work.


Book Synopsis Adapting philosophy by : Catherine Constable

Download or read book Adapting philosophy written by Catherine Constable and published by Manchester University Press. This book was released on 2013-01-18 with total page 236 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Adapting Philosophy looks at the ways in which The Matrix Trilogy adapts Jean Baudrillard’s Simulacra and Simulation, and in doing so creates its own distinctive philosophical position. Where previous work in the field has presented the trilogy as a simple ‘beginner’s guide’ to philosophy, this study offers a new methodology for inter-relating philosophy and film texts, focusing on the conceptual role played by imagery in both types of text. This focus on the figurative enables a new-found appreciation of the liveliness of philosophical writing and the multiple philosophical dimensions of Hollywood films. The book opens with a critical overview of existing philosophical writing on The Matrix Trilogy and goes on to draw on adaptation theory and feminist philosophy in order to create a new methodology for interlinking philosophical and filmic texts. Three chapters are devoted to detailed textual analyses of the films, tracing the ways in which the imagery that dominates Baudrillard’s writing is adapted and transformed by the trilogy’s complex visuals and soundtrack. The conclusion situates the methodology developed throughout the book in relation to other approaches currently emerging in the new field of Film-Philosophy. The book’s multi-disciplinary approach encompasses Philosophy, Film Studies and Adaptation Theory and will be of interest to undergraduates and postgraduates studying these subjects. It also forms part of the developing interdisciplinary field of Film-Philosophy. The detailed textual analyses of The Matrix Trilogy will also be of interest to anyone wishing to deepen their understanding of the multi-faceted nature of this seminal work.

The Matrix in Theory

The Matrix in Theory

Author: Myriam Díaz-Diocaretz

Publisher: Rodopi

Published: 2006

Total Pages: 315

ISBN-13: 9042016396

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The Matrix trilogy continues to split opinions widely, polarising the downright dismissive and the wildly enthusiastic. Nevertheless, it has been fully embraced as a rich source of theoretical and cultural references. The contributions in this volume probe the effects the Matrix trilogy continues to provoke and evaluate how or to what extent they coincide with certain developments within critical and cultural theory. Is the enthusiastic philosophising and theorising spurred by the Matrix a sign of the desperate state theory is in, in the sense of "see how low theory (or 'post-theory') has sunk"? Or could the Matrix be one of the "master texts" for something like a renewal for theory as now being mainly concerned with new and changing relations between science, technology, posthumanist culture, art, politics, ethics and the media? The present volume is unashamedly but not dogmatically theoretical even though there is not much agreement about what kind of theory is best suited to confront "post-theoretical" times. But it is probably fair to say that there is agreement about one thing, namely that if theory appears to be "like" the Matrix today it does so because the culture around it and which "made" it itself seems to be captured in some kind of Matrix. The only way out of this is through more and renewed, refreshed theorising, not less.


Book Synopsis The Matrix in Theory by : Myriam Díaz-Diocaretz

Download or read book The Matrix in Theory written by Myriam Díaz-Diocaretz and published by Rodopi. This book was released on 2006 with total page 315 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Matrix trilogy continues to split opinions widely, polarising the downright dismissive and the wildly enthusiastic. Nevertheless, it has been fully embraced as a rich source of theoretical and cultural references. The contributions in this volume probe the effects the Matrix trilogy continues to provoke and evaluate how or to what extent they coincide with certain developments within critical and cultural theory. Is the enthusiastic philosophising and theorising spurred by the Matrix a sign of the desperate state theory is in, in the sense of "see how low theory (or 'post-theory') has sunk"? Or could the Matrix be one of the "master texts" for something like a renewal for theory as now being mainly concerned with new and changing relations between science, technology, posthumanist culture, art, politics, ethics and the media? The present volume is unashamedly but not dogmatically theoretical even though there is not much agreement about what kind of theory is best suited to confront "post-theoretical" times. But it is probably fair to say that there is agreement about one thing, namely that if theory appears to be "like" the Matrix today it does so because the culture around it and which "made" it itself seems to be captured in some kind of Matrix. The only way out of this is through more and renewed, refreshed theorising, not less.

Jacking In To the Matrix Franchise

Jacking In To the Matrix Franchise

Author: Matthew Kapell

Publisher: A&C Black

Published: 2004-06-01

Total Pages: 240

ISBN-13: 9780826415875

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There have already been several very successful books devoted to the original film in the Matrix trilogy. This entirely new collection of essays is the first book to examine the trilogy as a whole - as well as related products such as The Animatrix and the computer game. Contributors tackle these subjects from a range of perspectives: religion, philosophy, gender, race, film studies, and science, providing a comprehensive view of everything Matrix-related.Reviewing the cultural and religious implications of the trilogy, authors look at:* American Religion, Community and Revitilization: Why The Matrix Resonates* Religion and Salvation, the Optiate of The Matrix Franchise* Gimme that Bullet Time Religion, or, The Dream of Spiritually Perfect Violence* Ultimate Reality: Buddhist and Gnostic Constructions of BlissAlso covered are theories of cyberworlds, issues of gender and race and the games and ethics of simulation.


Book Synopsis Jacking In To the Matrix Franchise by : Matthew Kapell

Download or read book Jacking In To the Matrix Franchise written by Matthew Kapell and published by A&C Black. This book was released on 2004-06-01 with total page 240 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: There have already been several very successful books devoted to the original film in the Matrix trilogy. This entirely new collection of essays is the first book to examine the trilogy as a whole - as well as related products such as The Animatrix and the computer game. Contributors tackle these subjects from a range of perspectives: religion, philosophy, gender, race, film studies, and science, providing a comprehensive view of everything Matrix-related.Reviewing the cultural and religious implications of the trilogy, authors look at:* American Religion, Community and Revitilization: Why The Matrix Resonates* Religion and Salvation, the Optiate of The Matrix Franchise* Gimme that Bullet Time Religion, or, The Dream of Spiritually Perfect Violence* Ultimate Reality: Buddhist and Gnostic Constructions of BlissAlso covered are theories of cyberworlds, issues of gender and race and the games and ethics of simulation.