CENTRAL THEMES IN PLATO’S ALLEGORY OF THE CAVE • Distinguishing illusion from reality • Ignorance

THE ALLEGORY OF THE CAVE AND INCEPTION S I M I L A R I T I E S • An illusion - In the Allegory of the Cave, the illusion was the shadows - In the movie, dreams were the illusion • Refusal to acknowledge reality - In the Allegory of the Cave, the remaining prisoners did not want to be freed nor listen to the freed prisoner - In the movie, certain characters wished to continue living in the dream world • D I F F E R E N C E S In the Allegory of the Cave, the prisoners’ reality is the shadows because they have lived all their life there while in the movie, one initially knows what reality is but as time passes, the person is led to believe that the dream is reality

DELINEATING “FALSE” REALITY FROM “TRUE” REALITY • Totems - Cobb spinning his totem - Arthur’s loaded red die - Ariadne slightly hollowing out a bishop chess piece • Ability to recreate the world around - Ariadne changing infrastructure and defying the laws of physics

DELINEATING “FALSE” REALITY FROM “TRUE” REALITY • Incapability to remember how one got to where he/she is - Cobb asked Ariadne to recall how they got to the coffee shop and she could not remember • Seeing people who aren’t supposed to be there or exist - Cobb still seeing his dead wife

IS THERE FREE WILL IF SOMEONE CAN INFILTRATE YOUR DREAMS? IS FREE WILL EASILY MANIPULATED?

• Free will is when a person does things on his/her own accord, because they

want to

, not because they were forced to do so. It is when there is a possibility to decide not to do that action.

• As explained in the movie, Cobb and his team cannot impose ideas, they can only suggest it to the dreamer. There is still free will because the infiltrators only suggested an idea to Fischer; it was still up to him what the final decision would be. However, free will can easily be manipulated.

COBB’S ACTIONS AND THE 4 NOBLE TRUTHS

S U F F E R I N G ( D U K K H A ) • Cobb cannot accept his wife’s death • Cobb wants to be with his children O R I G I N O F S U F F E R I N G ( S A M U D A Y A ) • Cobb’s guilt; blaming himself for Mal’s death • Cobb wants to be with his children but he cannot because he was charged with his wife’s murder

COBB’S ACTIONS AND THE 4 NOBLE TRUTHS

C E S S A T I O N O F S U F F E R I N G ( N I R O D H A ) P A T H T O T H E C E S S A T I O N O F S U F F E R I N G ( M A G G A ) • The way to end suffering is detachment. Cobb has to let go of Mal.

• Noble Eightfold Path: 1. Right understanding 2. Right thought 3. Right speech 4. Right action 5. Right livelihood 6. Right effort 7. Right mindfulness 8. Right concentration Wisdom Morality Concentration

COBB’S ACTIONS AND THE 4 NOBLE TRUTHS

P A T H T O T H E C E S S A T I O N O F S U F F E R I N G ( M A G G A ) • Cobb developed himself in 3 main aspects: - Wisdom: acknowledging that Mal is no longer alive and he cannot do anything about it - Concentration: freeing himself of his guilt - Morality: finally letting go of Mal * The noble eightfold path can be taken in any order; the eight divisions simply support and strengthen each other

REFERENCES

• • • • • Botz-Bornstein, T. (2013). Inception and Philosophy: Ideas to Die For. Chicago, Illinois: Open Court.

Johnson, D. (2011). Inception and Philosophy: Because It's Never Just a Dream. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons.

Russell, P. (n.d.). Consciousness and Reality. Retrieved Oct. 31, 2013 from http://www.peterrussell.com/Reality/RHTML/R2.php

Walia, A. (2013). How Do Human Beings Perceive Reality and What Does it Matter. Retrieved Oct. 30, 2013 from http://www.collective-evolution.com/.../ http://dharma.ncf.ca/introduction/truths/NobleTruth-4.html