Free will is the belief that people have an unimpeded ability to choose the course of their lives whereas fate means all of our actions’ outcomes are already fixed. Neo and the Cypher for me are mostly the personifications of free will, Agent Smith and machines are the personifications of fate.
The Matrix is a contentment program that uses humans as energy sources to empower machines, its a system of control and determinism in which people live out their lives ignorantly and predetermined that they are ultimately slaves to a computer program. The movie is based on an unavoidable conflict between free will and fate.
In the world of Matrix fate is absolute as the world is preprogrammed. Human actions, decisions, and outcomes are predetermined so free will seems to be absent. When Morpheus offers Neo -who he undoubtedly believes to be The One to shut this system down- the choice to pick the red pill and see the real world he’s living in or pick the blue pill and stay in this fake world; he is offering him the choice between fate and free will. Here Neo has two choices with decidedly determined results. The choice of a comfortable fake world or a free but harsh one that is real with all of its unpleasantries.
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When Morpheus takes Neo to meet the oracle, there is the possibility of learning what his fate is and his identity. This scene was a focus on whether knowing your fate determines your choices. When he breaks the vase the oracle says to him if he has still broken it if she hadn’t told him about it. Despite, Neo has gone to the oracle to hear her precise answers and predictions, she offered him rather mysterious and unsettling projections. She only prophesizes that sometimes Neo will have to choose between the death of either himself or Morpheus. Because Morpheus is so blindfolded believes that he finally found the one and his search is over, he will sacrifice himself to the agents to save Neo.
The oracle disdains him by telling Neo that ‘’You don’t believe in any of this fate crap you’re in control of your own life”. But it is not only the fate controlling Neo’s life and his path, but free will and fate are also incorporated together for him. He makes his own decisions regardless of what if fated. But still, the outcomes result as they were predicted by the oracle. He has felt that his actions would lead to another direction then was predicted by the oracle however they didn’t. Neo, who is trying to prove the oracle wrong, and Morpheus, who takes the prophecy as the most important thing in the world, both end up fulfilling their respective prophecies.
One of the powerful and revealing scenes about this dilemma is where Trinity faces her fate, which was once predicted by the oracle that she will be in love with someone and that someone will be The One. She reveals that she is not afraid to accept her fate in loving Neo. Here shows the importance of decision making, which is at the heart of fate and the free will dilemma.
From my perspective, Cypher along with Neo is one of the outstanding characters who has made a clear choice of free will when he decides to betray Morpheus and his crew. He has lived in the world of Matrix for a long period before he joins to Morpheus and chooses to go back again through the help of a bargain with Agent Smith because he feels dissatisfied with Morpheus, his promises, his goal and also he craves for the fake happiness and satisfaction in there.
