About to turn twenty years of filming, “The Truman Show?” (1998, Peter Weir) continues to be a pedagogical reference to address specific topics in philosophy and psychology. Using media and symbols, this film clearly reflects a process as complex as the awakening of consciousness.
Consciousness can be defined as the psychic act by which an individual is perceived in the world, so the awakening of consciousness occurs not only when the person is aware that he is part of the world, that exists, but when he is aware that it is something or someone in relation to the world.
- It also serves to understand how to realize our importance.
- At this point.
- A spark is ignited in us.
- A spark that makes us doubt everything we have been told.
- And after reaching this point we can settle for what we know or overcome our fears and insecurities to get out of the “cavern”.
The allegory of the cave, as it is also called, was created by the Greek philosopher Plato (427-347 BC) to symbolize human knowledge. According to this theory, man would be like a prisoner in a cave and what he knows is just a reflection or a shadow of reality. The real thing is outside the cave. One thing is difficult to understand when we never leave the cave and get used to using and working with shadows, in this sense, we do not know the existence of reality or are afraid.
What’s our cave? Our cave is our home or the environment in which we grow up, it is normal that since we are young we have been given a series of values, ranging from religious values to political values, when they are born in a community, we grow in contact with traditions that give us a sense of identity. So many people resist novelty for fear of losing that identity.
As human beings in search of safety, we tend to accept the known customs practiced by the people we care about, in this sense, neither society nor the family teaches us to do so?(Despite this, it can be observed). Critical opinion is not encouraged, few children live in stimulating environments that encourage them to analyze, compare and develop their own opinions, as well as practice self-awareness.
The main character of this film, Truman, is a man who cannot decide anything about his life, since his birth has been bought by a television show of which he is the protagonist, all the decisions that Truman makes (going out together, getting married, buying a house, working?) Not chosen by him. They are, in fact, actions guided by the creator of the program (which, in this case, is compared to a god).
Truman lives happily and oblivious to everything, inside the huge dome that was built as if it were a city, and when he suspects something or has doubts, he is unable to leave this world because he is controlled by the fears and insecurities that limited it. in childhood (e. g. sea and trauma with his father). But there comes a time when you can no longer ignore your doubts because your world is no longer the same as before.
In fact, we are all Truman. La only option we need to be authentic is when that spark, this awakening of consciousness, occurs in us and only our will helps us overcome the fear that can create the scenario that awaits us.
When this awakening of consciousness occurs in people, do we acquire the energy and determination to leave the comfort zone and our environment, animated by the feeling that if we walk away we will see things more clearly?So, from the inside, you can ask: What do I want to do with my life ?, Do my beliefs continue to complete me?What do I believe in or trust?
Your answers should be more valuable to you than the opinions of others, they are perfect for you, they are made according to your measure and not that of others, it is easy to think that we are not free, because we all have responsibilities (family, studies, work), but the truth is that the most accessible and pure act of freedom is to think, we are free to think and imagine what we want , just as we are free to decide accordingly, Truman also has the opportunity to know the truth.
When we settle down with the usual, only with what we have been taught, we prevent evolution from happening, on the other hand, when we overcome the fear of the unknown and seek our own knowledge, we begin to go down a path in which to acquire principles, values and beliefs of our own, that are healthier, more truthful and therefore less dissonant. Finally, overcoming yourself will bring you more freedom and, to do so, two ingredients are always needed: a call of attention and an exercise. bravery.
“There is no barrier, padlock or padlock that can impose the freedom of my mind. -Virginia Woolf (1882-1941). English writer