Jason BollingProfessor Guy LockhartPHIL-20117 March 2014Plato, Descartes and the Matrix EssayI: Compare and contrast the Matrix with Plato and Descartes excerpts. What are some similarities and differences? Let's start by comparing The Matrix to Plato's passage The Allegory of the Cave and Descartes' passage Meditation I. All of these readings seem to have characters who are in a world of illusions and dreams. Deception is also very important in these stories; the characters are deceived by what they see and the world around them. In these stories it is essential that the characters discover the truth about what the true reality is. In The Matrix Neo is told that the world he thought was real was actually nothing more than a virtual world created by a computer program. He was unaware of the real world until he took a red pill, which awakened Neo from his dream state and allowed him to see beyond what he thought was true. Neo felt different emotions after taking the pill. He experiences denial, confusion and fear, but eventually ...