Simulacra and Simulation

Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia - Cite This Source

Simulacra and Simulations (Simulacres et Simulation in French) is a philosophical treatise by Jean Baudrillard that discusses the interaction between reality, symbols and society.

Simulacra and Simulation is most known for its discussion of images, signs, and how they relate to the present day. Baudrillard claims that modern society has replaced all reality and meaning with symbols and signs, and that the human experience is of a simulation of reality rather than reality itself. The simulacra that Baudrillard refers to are signs of culture and media that create the perceived reality.

A specific analogy that Baudrillard uses is a fable derived from On Exactitude in Science by Jorge Luis Borges. In it, a great Empire created a map that was so detailed it was as large as the Empire itself. The actual map grew and decayed as the Empire itself conquered or lost territory. When the Empire crumbled, all that was left was the map. In Baudrillard's rendition, it is the map that people live in, the simulation of reality, and it is reality that is crumbling away from disuse.

The Matrix

The Matrix makes many connections to Simulacra and Simulation. The first being, Simulacra and Simulation is the book that Neo keeps his pirated software in. Moreover, in the film, the chapter 'On Nihilism' is in the middle, rather than the end of the book.

Morpheus also refers to the real world outside of the Matrix as the "desert of the real", a direct reference to Baudrillard's work. In the original script, Morpheus referenced Baudrillard's book specifically.

Keanu Reeves, aka Neo, was asked by the directors to read the book, as well as Out of Control and Evolution Psychology, before even being cast as Neo.

In an interview, Baudrillard claimed that The Matrix has nothing to do with his work.

Footnotes

Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia © 2001-2006 Wikipedia contributors (Disclaimer)
This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License.
Last updated on Thursday March 13, 2008 at 13:46:47 PDT (GMT -0700)
View this article at Wikipedia.org - Edit this article at Wikipedia.org - Donate to the Wikimedia Foundation