Your life is a lie

[AngloDoom]

Considering I just shook Sir Patrick Stewart's hand and got invited to run over and say 'hello' if I ever find myself in his vicinity, today would be a shit day to find out I'm a pod-person.

There is a story here worth telling.

Unfortunately, it's not that exciting a story. Mr Stewart is the chancellor of my university, and I just graduated today. He threw open an invitation to all graduates to come up to him and say 'hello, chancellor', since it always gives him the warm fuzzies.

That said, he was polite enough to address me by my name, congratulated me sincerely, and beamed as if he was genuinely proud. When I said "Thank you, Chancellor" he looked genuinely happy. I even got a grin and a nod when I gave him a nod from the stands afterwards.

Now I just need to find his address so I can 'accidentally' walk by him every day until one of us dies.

 

[TWRule]

In my eyes they are.

Fair enough.

Your entire life is a lie, every thought, feeling, emotion. You are no longer certain if any part of who "You" are is genuine on any level,...

To find all of who you were is but a dream, everyone you know just a random party of your own psyche.

That would only be true if you identify yourself in terms of your environment rather than how you choose to interact with that environment. You can learn something about yourself in dreams, for example, but seeing how you react in the situations they put you in.

The prospect of your human relationships prior not being real would be disturbing, but there are noticeable differences between how we interact with people in dreams versus reality, so there must be yet another way to distinguish between the relationships you might have in this new world and the world you experienced before. If there is no distinction, you could say those relationships you had before were just as good; perhaps you were even interacting with other "dreamers". If there is a distinction, it's possible that you could establish relationships that are more "real" now than you ever could before.

...you have no understanding of why you were tortured to such a degree (For in my eyes the scenario given would most certainly be torture). You may or may not have a common language with those you do find, you most certainly do not have any form of common culture, religion, faith. Your entire life was the construct of some other beings, beings so powerful as to create such a wonderous engine.

I wouldn't say that's a safe assumption; it's more likely that the "simulated world" was based on something that's fundamentally intelligible to the designers. According to the story, it's not as if you were raised in a universe of a completely different ontological substrate. The fact that this new world seems intelligible to you at all and even downright familiar in many ways would tell you that there's not all that much difference. It'd be as much culture shock as going to a foreign country for the first time without preparation. Who said they weren't human, or human-like? [/quote]

Fragile? Realistic.

I find it hard to believe that so many of you would just wake up and go "Wow, time to explore". It would be terrifying and it would drive most people mad.

Alright, I'll be willing to give you that; the average person might have that problem. However, the philosophically curious would not.

 

[JimB]

Unfortunately, it's not that exciting a story. Mr Stewart is the chancellor of my university, and I just graduated today.

There aren't many celebrities I give a crap about beyond their status as human beings just like anyone else, but Patrick Stewart is one of those people I'd squee if I met, so I appreciate the story. Thanks, AngloDoom.

 

[phantasmalWordsmith]

I've always tried to escape parts of my life that I didn't like. My parents separation with each of them trying to get my support against the other. I buried myself in games to avoid that. So carrying on the line of thought with this story; I've just learned that all of that was false and that I never have to go there again. So why go back? The memories of my old shall live on with me and shall sculpt my path into the new world as I accept what it would seem is my new reality and a second chance

 

[jpoon]

I'd not go back to sleep. Life already blows, might as well take a spin into the "real world".

 

[VoidWanderer]

Not everyday you get a fresh start.

Now, where did I see that shotgun?

 

[Wolf In A Bear Suit]

I'd probably find the fellow in charge and take a dump all over his house. Beyond that I'd certainly see whats what, talk to some people and see reality. Life wouldn't be the same knowing that my world is a lie

 

[Wintermoot]

probably have a emotional breakdown
I,m not sure if I want to go back to my fake life and be happy
or stay in the future reality and know nobody.

 

[Segadroid]

I'd run right out of there and explore the world for real.

Of course, that's what I would be doing if it wouldn't terrify me that much that everything I had done and hoped to achieve was for nothing.

Sooooo yeah. *Crawls back into capsule*

 

[Shoggoth2588]

Masturbate for the first time, but this time...its real.

...dammit, I'm trying but failing to find that clip Linkara uses..."There is logic in what he says"

Anyway, since it seems the building is abandoned and yet still has a good view of the surrounding city, I would just hole up there for a day or two and watch the city below. If I notice things like passenger planes/cars rolling around/flying around I'll assume it's safe for me to leave the building and see what's up. If the world seems to be inhabited by 10ft lizard people who blow things up regularly, then I may just go back to the Escapist Pod.

 

[legendp]

At this point in the story, I don't have any basis for a distinction that this experience is more "real" than my previous life. In any case, I certainly have no reason to say "all those experiences and relationships I had didn't count". Dream or "reality" it's real to me - the only difference that would make anything "more real" would be what is shared between myself and others. I might explore the city and keep an eye out for any fundamental differences in interaction between myself and others, and go from there.

There are only two logical options.

If it is possible, reconnect yourself to the machine and hope you forget reality.
If that is not possible, end your life as quickly and painlessly as possible.

Anything else would quickly drive you insane.

Uh, speak for yourself, bud. Not all our psyches are so fragile...and those are far from the only "logical" options.

In my eyes they are.

Your entire life is a lie, every thought, feeling, emotion. You are no longer certain if any part of who "You" are is genuine on any level, you have no understanding of why you were tortured to such a degree (For in my eyes the scenario given would most certainly be torture). You may or may not have a common language with those you do find, you most certainly do not have any form of common culture, religion, faith. Your entire life was the construct of some other beings, beings so powerful as to create such a wonderous engine.

Truly, the situation would be terrific. Terrifying.

To find all of who you were is but a dream, everyone you know just a random party of your own psyche.

Fragile? Realistic.

I find it hard to believe that so many of you would just wake up and go "Wow, time to explore". It would be terrifying and it would drive most people mad.

Well what else would you do other than explore and try to find some answers, no matter what I would never quit on life, as for going back into this so called dream machine, how do I know that this new reality is a reality (there was a foreign movie, not the matrix but another one that cleverly explored this idea).

You cannot speak for everyone, for me it would greatly disturb me but drive me insane and break me, I am not so sure. like I siad I would explore and try to find answers, they may be real people, not just your imagination connected to other machine's and you woud try to find them.

 

[Right Hook]

I would walk out into the city and try to observe everything. Take in as much information about the place as I could, like the time, the extent of tech, the government, just how everything operates. I would then see the lengths of my faux reality, did I make everyone up or are they real in this world? Do they know me or are they simply templates for mind?

Next I would try to figure out why I was put in there, if it was malicious then I'd probably stay out. If I disliked the new world, I would see about going back, only try to find a way to make a few...changes first. I wouldn't want to remember reality but I'd want to have a sub-command built into my mind that could eject me from the sleep if things got too dangerous or unenjoyable. Lastly I'd see about tweaking a few things, like my money, my station in life, etc. I realize this makes me sound like Cypher but if there is no enemy and this world is only for me personally than there really is no harm in me staying.

 

[moostar]

Go into the city, and face what this "reality" has to offer with the many "colorful" thoughts of my past, if i even had one :/

 

[Master_of_Oldskool]

Stay in the lab, learn to operate the machine, and set it for a simulation far more pleasant than the one it was putting me through before. Preferably one involving pokémon. Pokémon and Charlize Theron. And David Tennant. And mass quantities of chocolate sauce.

 

[FalloutJack]

Not everyday you get a fresh start.

Now, where did I see that shotgun?

Living in a shotgun shack.

OT: *Gets up*

This is not my beautiful house! This is not my beautiful wife! How did I get here?

Same as it ever was.
Same as it ever was.
Same as it ever was.
Same as it ever was.

 

[JesterRaiin]

So I ask you escapists, what would you do if that happened to you?Would you embrace reality, or indulge in the ultimate escapism?

Ha, this reminds me of Interlude Anime. Exactly same theme.

OT : I don't think that it's possible for me to go back to lie once i'd know the truth. Hard as it will be - i'll leave the illusion behind and take my chances in the real world.

 

[Kae]

No, NO! You got my character all wrong, I wouldn't run after finding that out, I'd keep exploring the lab trying to find out more, as for my family and all that stuff, I'm familiar with how I deal with loss, and actually since my reasoning tends to be "I'm so happy that I got to meet that person while it was alive", this could be interesting as it not happening would be rather confusing and stop that thought from being so comfortable and allowing me to remain happy during those situations, quite an intriguing thought, considering my reactions to any event tend to be a little weird I would love to know how I would react to that, though then again it would make sense and would explain why I'm always fine when something bad happens, and that would explain why I tend to not feel things like pain sometimes, it makes so much sense, hell that would explain how I've been lit on fire over 7 times and I have no visible scars, it makes more sense than real life...
Anyway I'd probably react like what you saw above and start rambling to myself all that stuff, probably in a more philosophical manner but after that and finding that out, but yeah after that I'd go check the city, and find out as much as I can about what is going on, as for going back, I don't think I'd give it much thought as since I have now been given the opportunity to see the truth, I'd just try to help as much as I can, besides whatever is going on has to be more interesting than a petty lie.

 

[White Lightning]

Hmm... Surely I can't be the ONLY pod person. I would find and wake up the others, convince them to follow and help me (Most people would be scared shitless after waking up like that and would probably believe me if I told them some story.) and venture out into this new world with all my new meatshi- I mean buddies.

 

[DeadFOAM]

If it's my life that's the lie in this reality, then maybe the cake ISN'T
TO THE BAKERY!

After that begin my scheme for world domination. If it doesn't work, just go back to sleep.

You actually made me laugh at a "cake is a lie" joke.

Props, man. Gotta give you props for that.