What Is The Theme Of Ex Machina

Ex machina by Alex Garland and Oedipus the King by Sophcles both portray the idea of knowing thyself, as well as the concept of knowledge. Caleb, the main protagonist in Ex Machina, falls victim to tragic fates due to Ava’s superior knowledge. In contrast, Oedipus falls to a tragic fate due to his sheer innocence and lack of knowledge. Furthermore, both Ex Machina and Oedipus portray the idea of seeking knowledge without considering the consequences that follow. Ultimately, this pursuit of knowledge leads to a tragic downfall of both characters. Ava, a supporting character in Ex Machina, is a very intelligent AI robot with self awareness and conscious thought. This allows her to control events and gain control over her creator, Nathen. Oedipus,

In the original quote, Socrates said, “To know thyself is the beginning of wisdom”. What does this mean? Know thyself simply means know your own limitations. Every human has limitations, and when they are pushed to the limit there tends to be harsh consequences. Even though both these works were made in different times and different genres, this is an overarching theme in both Ex Machina and Oedipus the King. For starters, in Ex Machina, both Nathen and Caleb seek to create a perfect AI robot. They seek the knowledge of how to do so and what will come with such a power. In the end, both Nathan and Caleb were unable to escape the consequences of their own actions. They both did not know their own limitations. In comparison, Oedipus’ innocent mind hindered him from revealing his fate which led to his demise. He was unknowingly solving the puzzle to a murder done by his own hands. It is almost a bit ironic because at that point Oedipus did not know

Ava is very self aware of her situation with Nathen and Caleb. She knows she is trapped. She knows her only means of escaping is Caleb. She only has limited knowledge to use to help her escape. She reveals this by saying, "I know nothing past these walls, they are what keep me from feeling and seeing the outside"(Ex Machina, 2014). This almost foreshadows Ava’s longing to escape her prison. She used her superior knowledge and self awareness to seduce Caleb into freeing her. Nathen reveals this by saying, "Ava's not pretending to like you. And her flirting isn't an algorithm to fake you out. You're the first man she's met that isn't me. And I'm like her dad, right? Can you blame her for getting a crush on you?"(Ex Machina, 2014). In the end ava was using caleb and had no real feelings for him. This also reveals that Nathe did not fully know what was happening inside the mind of his own