Jacking in to the Matrix Franchise: Cultural Reception and Interpretation

by William G. Doty (Editor), Matthew Wilhelm Kapell (Editor)

The Matrix films, along with the video games, animé and toys inspired by them, are rich with philosophical, religious and social references that cry out for interpretation. Here these ideas are examined in the context of the history of thought and cinema. The variety of applications in this study is remarkable, engaging thinkers ranging from conservative Christians to postmodernist critics. Feminist issues meet cyberpunk, cosmological perspectives meet mythological and literary analysis. Violence in society, American values, politics, heroic models - all are called into question as several esteemed scholars decode the entire world of the Matrix franchise.

Genres: Nonfiction, Essays, Cultural, Film

232 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 2004

Reviews

[Carlos · Rating 3 out of 5]

I remember watching The Matrix the first time and being blown away by it. When I saw this book I hoped that it would help me look at it through new eyes. I was not disappointed. The authors in this collection analyze, and criticize, the franchise in several interesting ways, from a gendered and raced perspective, to a fascistic/democratic dichotomy to a discussion of whether the choice to remain in a simulation could be morally defended. Aside from a few discussions that seemed to require more than a bit of knowledge of Baudrillard’s “Simulacra and Simulation”, I found almost all the essays comprehensible and thought provoking.