Virtual Reality

The virtual/simulated reality created by hallucinogenic drugs that Lem presents is very similar to that presented in the Matrix, as well as many other works of fiction (check it out!: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Simulated_reality_in_fiction). It also strongly reminded me of a short story by Ray Bradbury, “The Veldt”, wherein two children begin to love their simulated reality nursery more than their parents; that story ends with the parents being eaten by lions, a fate that the children had imagined so many times that it came true. I wasn’t really sure what to make of the ending to either of these stories (simulated reality will come true and eat you? everything is a dream?), but both stories share a critical apprehension of simulated realities. When does the simulated reality end and the real world begin? As the two worlds blend together, we become attached to the more pleasant and utopian virtual reality. As Lem showed, our attachment to that virtual reality would make it nearly impossible to be able to face the stark realities of our crumbling world. It’s much easier to slip into a perfect virtual world than it is to promote change and prosperity in a world where everyone has an opinion, and compromise seems almost folkloristic. Waking up with the world still crumbling around you, or seeing to fruition the parricidal fantasies of young children shows the harsh truth that simulated reality only serves to conceal. We need to be present, to be involved in our world and our future.