The Matrix And The Rat Race
Should We Want To Escape?
C. N. Vujanovic
ESCAPING THE MATRIX, OR THE RAT RACE, HAS BECOME A POPULAR PHENOMENON in the past year. But what do we actually mean when we say the Matrix? And should we even want to escape the Matrix?
Defining ‘the Matrix’ is in itself a challenge; we struggle to put what we mean into words. I believe this is because of the intermingling of two separate ideas. The first idea is the notion of ‘the Matrix’ as the ‘average life’, the common 9-5 job, or even ‘the government wanting to control us’. The second idea is that reality, as we understand it, is an illusion.
In this article, because the former is particularly relevant, I will be considering whether we should try to escape the ‘average life’. To do this I will outline what the ‘average life’ looks like, and the benefits and costs of living the average life.
As I have detailed, the ‘average life’ looks like the 9-5 grind, the endless, and oftentimes meaningless striving simply to put food on the table, the simple striving to survive. The tired commuter we all know provides a clear image of the average life. Saying that type of living does not appear to be attractive would be an understatement.
The clear downside of living this type of life is that it may be mundane and boring. You grow up, get a job, a family, and the cycle repeats. As there are many other disadvantages, I will simply list them:
- Lack of flexibility
- Limited autonomy
- Creative constraints
- Health concerns
- Lack of career growth
At this point I would imagine quite a few of us are drawing up our escape plan to free ourselves from the system that limits our very humanity. However there are several abstract benefits that are worth weighing in this discussion. Most significantly regarding the 9-5’s benefits is the ‘Hedonic Treadmill’. What this theory practically means is that if you escape the Matrix you begin to find other things that you otherwise found enjoyable, boring.
For example, if all a Shore student does is play video games and scroll on TikTok, the level of happiness (corresponding to the dopamine released in their brain) will become their average. Thus, when studying (relatively less dopamine is released), they find it less enjoyable. In contrast to the Shore student who only studies because they do not have an understanding of the high dopamine released as one plays video games, they find the studying relatively enjoyable.
In the context of the 9-5, if one is ‘living the life’ and escaping the Matrix they have a large amount of dopamine released from travelling the world and ‘living’, which creates a higher baseline for happiness. The high baseline is particularly relevant in the mundane interactions between family and friends that hence feel less meaningful to this individual. In other words, the escapee has skewed expectations of what is important due to the influence of dopamine on the brain.
Not only are there profound short term impacts of this, such as a decreased meaning in relationships, but also long term impacts. Three main impacts are as follows:
- Difficulty finding fulfilment in the long term
- Escalating expectations for happiness which leads to long term disappointment
- The inability to reach the heightened baseline of happiness leads to long term disappointment
Considering these on balance with the disadvantages of the ‘average life’, in my opinion, because the 9-5 has long term benefits, these outweigh the disadvantages. That is not to say that the 9-5 is for everyone. Rather, I hope to have demonstrated that the 9-5, the ‘Matrix’, is not as evil as it is made out to be by popular culture. Thus, I encourage everyone reading to consider what is in their best interests and the interests of those around them and make a decision accordingly. I encourage each and every Shore student to journey down whichever path they feel appropriate, yet ultimately never neglect connections and relationships. See, relationships are not an illusion,’ a glitch in the Matrix’, but are rather the realest thing in this world. Relationships are what uphold us and sustain us through all the shenanigans and mundanity of the chaotic world. Thus, hold onto them tightly as even if they are simply an illusion, they give us meaning, and value, and remove the mundanity of the ‘Matrix’.