Multiple Realities Coexisting Simultaneously

Multiple Realities Coexisting Simultaneously

The Questioning of reality is a major theme in cyberpunk. Each piece of text we have read so far this term has dealt with, in one way or another, reality and how each character has his or her own version of reality, and what exactly reality is, or if it can even be explained in one way without contradicting another persons reality. The reality slippage that occurs with, what seems, every major character of cyberpunk text adds to the notion that one cannot predict what one persons reality is going to be, or how they will react to current surroundings. For the character Case, in William Gibson's Neuromancer, every time he plugs into cyberspace his reality changes completely, time passes by more rapidly as he looses touch with what is going on around him. In Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, by Philip K. Dick, the citizens of post-apocalyptic earth use a machine called the empathy box, where their reality is shifted to a place where every one that is plugged in at that moment in time shares their emotions, and learn through being with Mercer what empathy truly means. Also, in PKD's novel characters are able to change their current state of emotion to better suit what is planned for the coming day. This form of reality slippage is in coalition with hyperreality, where the characters can leave the reality the forces of nature have given them and move to one that fits their current task. The Question of whether or not androids can, along side humans, live in a reality that is unique to them, or if, since they are machines, live in a reality that is programmed into them, thus sharing the same reality and not having a unique existence themselves is also brought up by PKD, in his novel. Another question to think about when dealing with plural realities and the differences between individuals realities, is what the world a schizophrenic lives in, or perhaps even the world an anti-social savant may dwell, is like and if so called “normal people” can even comprehend this...

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