Symbolism in the Matrix

Has anyone noticed how symbolic the matrix can get?

The color black in particular (excuse spelling if it's wrong).

They wear black as to not be noticed. They wear black to look anonymous and hidden. Also, the shades. They wear shades to hide their eyes and their personalities. They try to look as disguised as possible. Wouldn't it be hard to identify someone (his face mostly) if he was wearing all black and shades?

Whenever the characters want to get personal about something or reveal themselves, they remove their shades. Examples of this:

Neo removes his shades to kiss Persephone.

Neo removes his shades after he rescues Trinity.

Neo removes his shades to talk to the Oracle. And them puts them back on to fight Agent Smith(s).

Morpheus removes his shades after rescuing the key maker on top of the semi. Almost right after Morpheus has "unmasked" himself, the Agent comes.

None of the bad guys (Twins and Agents mostly) ever remove their shades unless they get knocked off or something.

Agent Smith removes his shades in the first movie when talking to Mr. Anderson in the interrogation room.

Neo breaks Agent Smiths shades in the first movie when their fighting. Basically Neo makes it personal and Smith removes what's left of them to answer back.

In addition to the previous one, Agent Smith loses his shades every time he's in a fight in the first movie.

Almost the only time Trinity is not wearing shades in the first movie is when he's warning Neo at the dance.

The first time Neo goes back into the matrix (to see the oracle) he's not wearing shades, as if he has nothing to hide. Even when he goes to rescue Morpheus, in the construct he is not wearing shades cause he trusts Tank, or has nothing to hide to Tank. Then he masks himself when he enters the matrix.

In summary of the previous one; Basically the entire time until he goes in to rescue Morpheus, Neo does not wear sunglasses because he is still used to the system or still trusts the matrix. Not until the matrix takes something dear to him (Morpheus) does he mask his identity from it (the matrix).

Don't forget the names!

Neo - Greek for in a new and different form or manner.

Morpheus - The Greek god of dreams.

Trinity - Two meanings - a. the unity of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit as three persons in one Godhead according to Christian dogma.

and b. a group of three closely related persons or things (Morpheus, Neo, and Trinity maybe???)

Agent Smith - Smith is a very common, generic name. Hence, the thousands of Smith replicas.

Hmmm that's all I can think of at the moment...

there are a lot more symbolic meanings and stuff, there are other threads that have just about all the theories and other meanings and symbolisms, you guys should go have a look at them, interesting.

also the numbers 101 and 303 which keep coming back... I'm still wondering what those are about...

I like discussing things like this :)

Also i might add that sunglasses to seperate/distance one's self from others. Highway troopers are a good example of this, it makes you more uncomfortable to be talking with them when they have their glasses on after they pull you over or something.

I heard that the number 101 is from a tortureroom in "1984". I don't know if it really was a tortureroom though.

I haven't read 1984 but yes I think that room 101 is the room that contains your worst fears.

101? where does 101 appear in the matrix (other than the highway 101, but that is a real existing interstate in California)?

101 was Neo's room number in M1. In George Orwell's 1984, room 101 was the room in the Ministry of Love where the presented you with your worst fear and made you crack. Pretty much they warped your mind to believe in a Big Brother figure that didnt really exist. Everyone should read that novel. By far one of the best i've had to read.

Originally posted by DNT5
Has anyone noticed how symbolic the matrix can get?

The color black in particular (excuse spelling if it's wrong).

They wear black as to not be noticed. They wear black to look anonymous and hidden. Also, the shades. They wear shades to hide their eyes and their personalities. They try to look as disguised as possible. Wouldn't it be hard to identify someone (his face mostly) if he was wearing all black and shades?

Whenever the characters want to get personal about something or reveal themselves, they remove their shades. Examples of this:

Neo removes his shades to kiss Persephone.

Neo removes his shades after he rescues Trinity.

Neo removes his shades to talk to the Oracle. And them puts them back on to fight Agent Smith(s).

Morpheus removes his shades after rescuing the key maker on top of the semi. Almost right after Morpheus has "unmasked" himself, the Agent comes.

None of the bad guys (Twins and Agents mostly) ever remove their shades unless they get knocked off or something.

Agent Smith removes his shades in the first movie when talking to Mr. Anderson in the interrogation room.

Neo breaks Agent Smiths shades in the first movie when their fighting. Basically Neo makes it personal and Smith removes what's left of them to answer back.

In addition to the previous one, Agent Smith loses his shades every time he's in a fight in the first movie.

Almost the only time Trinity is not wearing shades in the first movie is when he's warning Neo at the dance.

The first time Neo goes back into the matrix (to see the oracle) he's not wearing shades, as if he has nothing to hide. Even when he goes to rescue Morpheus, in the construct he is not wearing shades cause he trusts Tank, or has nothing to hide to Tank. Then he masks himself when he enters the matrix.

In summary of the previous one; Basically the entire time until he goes in to rescue Morpheus, Neo does not wear sunglasses because he is still used to the system or still trusts the matrix. Not until the matrix takes something dear to him (Morpheus) does he mask his identity from it (the matrix).

I think the shades are a sign of showing one's self. If the eyes are "the window to the soul", revealing the eyes reveals one's true self, or purpose. Smith removed his shades when speaking to Morph. in M1, i think the reason they are off when fighting is because he doesn't really want to fight on these terms. All the agents don't have a soul, or true sense of purpose, so they keep the shades on. Smith, though not human, had a true sense of purpose. maybe he was a different definition of "real", like 'stuck b/t your world and ours'......

or maybe i'm full of s***

I agree with StormCyko - I love talking about things like this!

The rooms 101 and 303...like someone said before, 101 is Neo's room (The One's room). The room 303 is where "Trinity" is in the beginning of M1, and it's also the room where Neo answers the phone in the end of M1 (notice how "Trinity" is with him during his toughest times?)

Also, if you remember the subway fight scene between Smith and Neo...there are number 3's all over the pillars in the subway - Trinity is with Neo again.

When that guy Choi (or Troy, I'm not sure) comes to visit Neo in M1, he calls Neo his Savior, his own personal Jesus Christ (hence, Neo saving everyone in the world - sorry to use big words like The Architecht!...concordantly hehe)

I don't know if anyone noticed the graffiti on the walls during the fight scene in M2 between Neo and all of the agent Smiths - but it says "The One", "Da Man", and "Bible" in a couple of the scenes.

Ok I know I'm going a bit buck wild - I'm sorry! But to add to what someone said earlier about the significance of Trinity's name - that she is the Father (God), the Son (Jesus), and the Holy Spirit. I read somewhere that in M1, Neo calls out random "God" and "Jesus" and "Jesus Christ" and accidentally on purpose, Trinity answers him (remember the part when Neo sees the place where he ate really good noodles...and in the club when Neo says to Trinity, God I thought you were a guy)

Just some random thoughts.....hmmm
:rolleyes:

Merovigian was on the 101st floor

yeah it was a sunny day today and i wore shades, but when i met this girl i took them off to speak to her, because i felt it was rude to wear them while speaking or just didnt feel comfortable...instinct i guess!

now i know the connection between Trinity and 3. Trinity means a group of 3 close people. So whenever 3 shows up, Trinity's there. Room 303 in the beginning of the first movie. When Neo's fighting agent smith, there's 3 on the pillars. And Trinity is next to Neo.

The 101 thing still puzzles me. Maybe the Wachowski Brothers read Orwell!

you ppl are so observant...I would have never noticed that! I wish i could be as observant...

maybe you would be more observant if you weren't smelling Keanu Reeves!

TIME magazine says that the agent's attire makes him look like the villian of our world: The Corporate Criminal. :)

Also, all the agents have common generic names, hence giving them the more anonymous, unidentifyable feel.

Agents from the first movie:

Agent Brown
Agent Jones
Agent Smith

Agents from the second movie:

Agent Jackson
Agent Johnson
Agent Thompson

One other thought, not all agents are caucasian males with brown hair. Agents take on the look of the country they're in. One of the Animatrix shorts takes place in Japan. The agents in the video are Japanese with black hair. I guess their last names would be something common too like "Sasaki". That makes you think about alot of common last names in other countries, like "Kim" in Korea for example.

101 is binary code for the number 5. As in...the 5th Matrix. :)

Yes it is all about symbolism

It sounds quite random: maybe you would be more observant if you weren't smelling Keanu Reeves!

I see everything yu are saying very interesting, but I like to see the movie in a more macrocosmical way.

I saw it like an analogy of many aspects of our own lifes.

Religion: The Choosen One, Trinity
Social: Every human lives in a bondage, we are attached to the matrix, to the system, to the structure, to society
Economics: Of course! The machines uses and consume our energy
Polictics (the language of power): We are slaves, they are our masters

We work and that work is energy, our energy. It can be producing and creating objects, or it can be making a service. Our work can be by our muscles, or by our brains, or a combination of them. All of us are underpaid, no matter if you recieve a salary you think is fair, because no matter how you are paid, you are producing more money than that you are recieving. Your boss, our bosses, the owner of the corporation you and I work, is stealing our energy to make him, or her, more rich and powerful. Doesn't it sounds familiar to you?

In a metaphorical way, we are all connected to tha matrix!!!

Do you think that choosing from reebok or nike is real freedom?
Do you think that wacthing Fox or CNN is a real choice?

Like in the movie, we are no longer born, we are grown. We no longer think, we are educated on their schools. Do you really think you are born because you choose to? Your parents make you born! But...Do they really decided to have you as a child? Or it was a religious or social discourse that tell them to have you born?

Do we really have a choice?

The movie for me is a symbol, but a symbol of a question mark ( ? ) .

And I really like to be questioned, I really like art that makes us think. I really like that thing about the 101, the 303 you are taking.

When Neo is in the Chamber with the Architec with all the monitors, makes me think on the whole movie, a vision of all of it, and a vision of its details at the same time.

SYMBOLISM

For me the whole Matrix series is a big word scramble.

I know I can rearrange N-E-O to spell O-N-E,
I just can't figure out what Morpheus spells when rearranged...