Similarities Between The Truman Show And Descartes

The study of philosophy can create doubt into one’s existence, reality, and the nature of knowledge. The questions created by philosophy can be seen throughout the media through the years. One example of this is in the movie The Truman Show.

There are many similarities between The Truman Show and René Descartes’ Meditations on First Philosophy. In both pieces of literature, doubt begins to settle into both Truman and Descartes about what they believe. Truman began to doubt everything he believed about his life after experiencing oddities, such as the radio announcing his movements and characters being seen through the elevator doors. This doubt can also be seen in Descartes through the meditations. Descartes realized how the false opinions

The two are also only able to discover the truth once they begin questioning everything. Descartes had to begin to doubt everything to find what he could truly believe. After much debate and consideration, he comes to the conclusion that he can trust a few things for certainty, the existence of himself and a greater being. Similar to Descartes, Truman was only able to discover his life was not what it seemed when he began to question everyone around him. He discovered how he is the center of the show through beginning to distrust his wife and friends. Descartes also believed that there was “some evil spirit, supremely powerful and cunning, [that] has devoted all his efforts to deceiving me” (16). This belief is similar to how Christof, The Truman Show producer and creator, fabricated Seahaven Island to deceive Truman into believing his reality. Another correlation between the two pieces of literature is that the only thing both knew for certain was that they must exist because they are a thinking being. Descartes decided after much consideration that, “I am, I exist” (18). Descartes is saying with this phrase that because he can think and can be

I believe that our happiness is partly dependent on ourselves because we can control our outlook on what happens to us. For example, one can try and find happiness and good in tough situations or one could just choose to wallow in sadness and self pity. However, I also believe that our happiness is dependent on others. For instance, abuse and other wrongdoings can severely affect one’s happiness. Finally, I believe that our happiness is also dependent on our environment. Outside factors like your family and upbringing, living conditions, and the culture around you can affect your happiness. Happiness is dependent on many factors, some of which are ourselves, others, and the surrounding