The Matrix and Philosophy: Welcome to... by Irwin, William

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The Matrix and Philosophy: Welcome to the Desert of the Real (Popular Culture and Philosophy, 3) Paperback – August 28, 2002

by William Irwin (Editor)

4.5 123 ratings

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The Matrix conveys the horror of a false world made of nothing but perceptions. Based on the premise that reality is a dream controlled by malevolent forces, it is one of the most overtly philosophical movies ever to come out of Hollywood. These thought-provoking essays by the same team of young philosophers who created The Simpsons and Philosophy discuss different facets of the primary philosophical puzzle of The Matrix: Can we be sure the world is really there, and if not, what should we do about it? Other chapters address issues of religion, lifestyle, pop culture, the Zeitgeist, the nature of mind and matter, and the reality of fiction.

Print length

320 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Open Court
Publication date

August 28, 2002
Dimensions

6 x 0.75 x 8.75 inches
ISBN-10

081269502X
ISBN-13

978-0812695021
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Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Open Court; First Edition (August 28, 2002)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 320 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 081269502X
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0812695021
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 2.31 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 0.75 x 8.75 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #339,799 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #481 in Philosophy Metaphysics
- #484 in Modern Western Philosophy
- #700 in Movie History & Criticism

Customer Reviews:
4.5 123 ratings

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William Irwin

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William Irwin is Herve A. LeBlanc Distinguished Service Professor in the Philosophy Department at King's College, Pennsylvania. Irwin's books include Little Siddhartha (2018), God Is a Question, Not an Answer (2018), and The Meaning of Metallica (2022). He is also the author of the novel Free Dakota (2016) and The Free Market Existentialist: Capitalism without Consumerism (2015). Irwin is best known for having originated the philosophy and popular culture genre of books with Seinfeld and Philosophy (1999), The Simpsons and Philosophy (2001), and The Matrix and Philosophy (2002). He was editor of these books and then General Editor of the Popular Culture and Philosophy Series through Open Court Publishing. In 2006, Irwin left Open Court to become the General Editor of The Blackwell Philosophy and Pop Culture Series, which includes Metallica and Philosophy (2007) and Black Sabbath and Philosophy (2012), among other volumes.

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4.5 out of 5

123 global ratings

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an excellent introduction to broader philosophical questions

Reviewed in the United States on April 27, 2014

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To even the most casual observer, there is more going on in The Matrix than mere storytelling - its release date over Easter weekend clearly hints at Judeo-Christian themes: Neo as the prophesized "One", a universal savior who returns from the dead to liberate humanity from being imprisoned in the Matrix. But there are much deeper philosophical issues explored in the film as well, as the contributors to _The Matrix and Philosophy_ illustrate. It is a wonderful journey down the rabbit hole as questions around reality, the philosophy of the mind, ethics, freewill and determinism are addressed.

For those interested in an solid introduction to philosophy (and the "big questions" philosophers from Socrates to Nozik have wrestled with), I cannot recommend this book highly enough. Were I teaching in the philosophy department, this would be my text of choice. (In fact, it was by a recommendation by a colleague in that department that I picked this up.) While the concepts are lofty, abstract and mind-bending, the authors, through pop-cultural references, connect the musings and writings of philosophers like Kant, Descartes, Hume as well as contemporary philosophers to events and plot points in the film, making these ideas both clear and accessable to lay readers.

At first I was a bit skeptical (no pun intended, and apologies to Pyrrho) of the premise of the book and its pop cultural approach to a serious discipline. I was immeadiately won over, however, by the introductory essay on Plato's "Allegory of the Cave" to Neo's discovery of what the Matrix is. The book is rich with such connections. Highly recommended.

11 people found this helpful

Welcome to the desert

Reviewed in the United States on November 25, 2012

Verified Purchase

It's kind of disrturbing if you are a imaginary kind of person, can't take you to mind trips you donpt need before you go to bed how ever it's a good lecture

George Guinness

George Guinness

Reviewed in the United States on February 7, 2020

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Just what I expected. I am very happy with this purchase.

One person found this helpful

William C. Waterson

Reviewed in the United States on February 2, 2017

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Good read

One person found this helpful

curious reading

Reviewed in the United States on January 1, 2017

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Boooooooorrrrrrring. I've read two excellent "...and Philosophy" books. This is not one of them. Filled with errors, extremely boring subject matter, poor explanations, poor writing, just terrible. I am completely forgiving when it comes to books and can find bits of enjoyment in most non-fiction. This was just horrible, though.
Two examples that come to mind: in the last chapter, the writer is using an esoteric term. He uses this term without defining it or relating what it means to the reader until about 3/4 of the way through the section. He uses the term in exactly the same context but chooses-that far in- to parenthetically explain what the term means.

Another instance is one author's justification for claiming the red pill's superiority over the blue pill because, though taking the blue pill will surely reduce a great a amount of angst, anxiety, and suffering, it will not remove ALL angst, anxiety, and suffering, so that we may as well opt for truth, as we'll be victim to these experiences regardless.

The book is filled with really rudimentary, verdant, and silly points like this. Issues are often taken for granted with little or no supporting evidence or justification.

I have no idea how or why erudite academics would put their names on most of this stuff.

4 people found this helpful

Matrix Nerds United

Reviewed in the United States on March 19, 2016

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Love this type of analysis

The Matrix is scary period..

Reviewed in the United States on October 7, 2013

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i thought the book would discuss more or the matrix I feel like we live in everyday as citizens and do not even know it..

One person found this helpful

Welcome to the desert of the boring...

Reviewed in the United States on May 15, 2004

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First let me say that I'm a big MATRIX fan. I also have a passion for philosophy. I had high hopes for this book but was soon dissapointed. With each new essay I felt I was starting over. The cave analogy became tiresome and I often found the different essayist going over the same topics. The other writters seem to use the movie to go off on ideas that have little to do with the movie. If you're just starting out in philosophy this might make an o.k. introduction otherwise I would keep looking.

10 people found this helpful

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Sarugumo

The Matrix and Philosophy

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 25, 2008

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This book looks at 'The Matrix' and philosophical questions in relation to it. It has a collection of essays by various authors and whilst most of these are very readable and clear, I found at least 3 to be poorly written and so 'Up' themselves that they imparted little worthwhile thoughts or insight. The editors essay was especially good as an introduction to the book and if he had written the rest then this could have been a stronger overall package. The essays were also quite repetitive, using the same quotes to justify their points to the extent that it got tedious reading them again and again. There is only so many 'splinter in your mind' and Cyphers ignorance at being plugged back in to the matrix references you can read in any one book, however much a fan of the film you are. Be aware this only covers the first film and I believe that there is another book in the series looking at the sequels, but based on this one I won't be tracking that down any time soon. For huge fans of the film this may be a good read, but for those interested in philosophical question raised by the matrix, any good introduction to philosophy book will serve just as well. If you'd like to explore the philosophical and scientific ideas behind this film more then I'd suggest 'Taking the Red Pill' by Glenn Yeffeth and David Gerrold as it is clearer and much more engaging. An OK book, but not outstanding.

Feel free to check out my blog which can be found on my profile page.

15 people found this helpful

Scriptwriter

Mostly incoherent gibberish

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 21, 2022

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I'm not anti-intellectual (I hold post-graduate qualifications) but this book, for the most part, is incoherent gibberish and only tangentially related to The Matrix.

Read Like A Splinter In Your Mind, for a much better philosophy book that covers the original Matrix trilogy.

Teodor Dinev

Well written book

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 12, 2013

Verified Purchase

It's a good reading for those who like philosophy. As it is a book based on a movie, it is a must to have watched the movie couple of times, and enjoyed it as well. I find well defended positions in the book, and strong points made by the authors of the essays.

3 people found this helpful

Aldo

Non ancora letto...ma spettacolo per come e quando è arrivato

Reviewed in Italy on February 1, 2017

Verified Purchase

Non ho ancora iniziato ad affrontare il libro, che deve essere esaltante ma anche complicato, ma voglio lodare il venditore: il libro è arrivato in fretta e in condizioni a dir poco perfette. Lo cercavo da anni e anni e sembrava impossibile: un miracolo che si avvera. Grandissimi!

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Kindle Customer

Looks great, materials look good

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on July 1, 2019

Verified Purchase

A good quality case.

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