Fantasy vs. Reality

This synthesis of themes is the warning bell on how much emotional and existential cost is involved in misunderstanding the thin line between what is real and what is merely

What is real and what do we really know? These are common questions that everyone asks sometime in their lives. These questions date back since man was made. Nobody knows 100% what happens to us when we die, or what our purpose is in life. Humans have a natural instinct to raise questions to material that we are uncertain of. The movie The Matrix, Descartes First Meditation, and Plato’s The Allegory of the Cave all raise different aspects to questions such as do I exist, what is reality, and how do I know?

Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been? by Joyce Carol Oates has a constant theme of reality and fantasy running parallel for 15 year old Connie. This short story begins with a description of Connie’s vain personality. The narrator describes her as pretty and self-centered (Oates 421). To emphasize her selfishness, Connie is contrasted with her sister, June, who is chubby, plain, and well-behaved. Connie’s mother always praises June for her work ethic and help around the house, but says Connie can’t do anything due to “trashy daydreams”. There isn’t much of a father figure in Connie’s life due to her father being away for work most of the time and detached when

Reality is the state of the world of how it really is, whereas an illusion is erroneous interpretation of reality. Illusions often derail people from their sanity, as they cause them to inadvertently live lives in accordance to false beliefs. As a result, the outcomes for these people, and the people around them, are often atrocious. The theme of illusion versus reality is excessively demonstrated in Macbeth, a play written by William Shakespeare, and also in The Crucible, a play written by Arthur Miller. In both plays, the characters that lived illusive lives ultimately ended up leaving behind a trail of ignominy, grief, and death. In Macbeth, it is Macbeth and Lady Macbeth who consistently misinterpret reality as a world that

People seem to think that everything that happens to them everyday is real. The question is, though, “What is real?”. Is everything you see everyday really real or is it fake? We might see fantasies that other people or machines have created for us. Maybe we are the ones that are not enlightened yet. Numerous essays and films have been produced on this subject. One essay is “The Allegory of the Cave” written by Plato in 360 B.C. Also, the movie The Matrix was filmed in 1999. Even though many differences can be drawn between “The Allegory of the Cave” and The Matrix, there are many similarities as well.

In the film “Bears Discover Fire” one may preserve the film as fansty. In the film, there are parts of the story line that truly cannot happen during this time on earth. For example, when the bears are standing upright. In this scene one may think to themselves that this is something that can/ will not happen. Today’s bears are not capable of standing upright and walking. Another example of a fantasy can be seen when the bears are walking around with fire. This scene shows signs of a fantasy because, a normal bear would not be capable of walking around with fire in their paws and setting up campfires. A final example of a fantasy in the film can be seen when, the grandma, Junior and Bobby are having a campfire with the bears in the woods. This is a scene that one might fantasize over. That is because it is not normal for humans to be close to a live bear and simple have a campfire with them. At this point a normal bear would have been frightened

Ignorance is bliss. This phrase, however comforting, is a provocative statement to the debilitating state of society and the human state of mind; the dual-edged comment is represented in both Plato’s Allegory of the Cave and the Wachoski brother’s The Matrix through universes, similar to our own, where people are in strong states of illusion and ignorance. Both have a character, which is brought to the “light” to realize this false reality and to liberate everyone else to a better reality, the “real” reality. Situations can arise where having knowledge of it can seem detrimental, however, our very existence as human beings is to live a life of bettering ourselves and the species in general through knowledge both

Everyone is told that they can be anyone they want to be, be anything they want to be, and go anywhere they want to go. I took this to heart and determined that I would go to my dream college, Washington University in St. Louis, and become an astounding author with an English degree to be proud of. However, I knew that I might need a backup college, and I settled upon Kansas University. Although the choice between the two originally seemed clear to me, after doing extensive research, my views were quickly morphed. While most people would chase after their dream college, I have found that facing reality, and choosing the so-called backup college, is by far the better choice.

Without fiction our imaginations will never be achieved, everything will be boring and too real.

Realism is a theory that depicts world politics as a ceaseless repetitive struggle for power. In other words, political realism seeks to explain international relations between states in terms of power. Realist “views that nation-state as the most important actor…because it answers to no higher authority;” in other words, it is an anarchic system (Kegley, 27). Some traits of realism are that states are sovereign, non-cooperation among states, and the exclusion if morality in policies.

The line separating reality and the illusion of reality is a blur. The line separating the narrator’s self-aware expression and his story telling is a blur. The line separating Ambrose and the narrator is a blur. All of this may blur understanding. It is clear, however, that these blurs exist because of the “funhouse”. A funhouse, Lost in the funhouse, in which exist other funhouses. Various funhouses exist in the story and in the writing. For this reason, the title Lost in the funhouse is very significant.

At some point, someone has said that high school will be the best four years of their lives and college gets even better. So with that idea in people’s heads, they come up with their ideal image of the college. They start planning the perfect scenario of what college they will go to and what their roommate will be like. They often try to compare an unrealistic image and turn it into a realistic image, but they are unlike in many ways. Once students step onto the college campus, they will soon face what it is actually like to be in college.When people understand that college is not the perfect movie scene, then they will take advantage of expanding and furthering their education seriously. Going to college is a whole different experience and there is a lot more to it such as the rigorous classes and overwhelming school work, being more independent, and forming new bonds with others.

When trying to comprehend international politics, current events, or historical context, having a firm grasp on the various international relations theories is essential to understanding patterns when looking at interstate affairs. Realism, liberalism, constructivism, and marxist radical theory are used to provide a framework by which we can dissect international relations.

Historically, humanity has been obsessed with discovering the nature of reality. Every person eventually develops their own worldview based on their beliefs, morals, and experiences. At one point in their lives, many people undergo a radical change in perception that forces them to change this view, eventually adopting a new perception of reality. Such a transformation occurs once one starts to question the fundamental nature of one’s own existence and that of the world around them. This realization begins with the disillusionment with one’s environment, continues with the questioning of one’s life’s worth, and concludes with the acceptance of a new worldview.

In the novel, Waiting for the Barbarians by J.M Coetzee, the magistrate’s progressive, non-linear dreams are a parallel to his growing involvement with the barbarians and his growing distaste for the empire. The great psychoanalyst, Sigmund Freud said, “The interpretation of dreams is the royal road to a knowledge of the unconscious.” In every dream there is a hidden meaning and when the reader starts analyzing the magistrate’s dreams he reveals that he is oddly attracted to the barbarians and knows he should not get involved and it will be a trial to get close to them.