Directed by Peter Weir, the film "The Truman Show" has caused many people, myself included, to question their own lives while providing an incredible viewing experience. In the film, the character Truman Burbank, unaware of his situation, lives within the world of a television program. His life is broadcast live on TV 24 hours a day, and the show is extremely popular nationwide. The turning point in the film begins when Truman starts to suspect that he is living in a simulation. Throughout the film, we watch Truman question the seemingly perfect aspects of his world and his supposedly perfect life.
Truman did not realize he was part of a program or simulation until he was 30 years old, simply because he believed only what he saw. This can be likened to Plato's allegory of the cave, where the cave dwellers believe only in what is presented to them and do not see the realities (reflections of the world of ideas) behind them. In the film, Truman starts to notice details that lead him to understand he is in a simulation. For example, there is a mix-up on the radio, he sees crew members through a hidden door, etc. All these details can be likened to shadows, which are reflections of the world of ideas.
Since childhood, Truman believed only what he was told and what he saw, but none of it was real. Similarly, in the real world, we tend to learn through what others tell us. As a result, we never truly see reality; instead, information is simply transferred. This too can be seen as an example of the allegory of the cave. The goal is to notice what has never been seen before. In this film, Truman does not just believe what people tell him but follows his own logic.
Descartes' famous saying, "I think, therefore I am," can also be related to this film. Truman approaches his situation skeptically. By thinking, Truman is able to find his true self; if he had not thought critically, he would not have found his identity. Living without questioning or thinking is to live without finding oneself and without knowing the truth. Such a life cannot be considered living. One’s existence is questioned.
If I had a choice, would I choose a perfect life? The short answer is no. In the film, we see the problems and monotony of Truman's "perfect" life. He works at a job he doesn’t love and is married to a woman he isn’t in love with, and everyone around him is always incredibly happy. Truman faces no difficulties or conflicts.
If we assume Truman was not in a simulation and that his real life was like this, it would not be a life I would consider beautiful. I believe life should have both positive and negative aspects. A person needs to learn from their mistakes in order to grow and improve their life.
If we had a perfect life, we wouldn’t have the chance to develop ourselves. We would be no different from a plant. I think one of Truman's biggest problems was that he struggled so much when he learned this tragic truth about himself because he had never faced any difficulties throughout his life. Someone who has never dealt with any challenges in life is bound to stumble eventually. No one’s life can be perfect, and there will always be a breaking point.
Therefore, I don’t think a perfect life is possible, nor would I want to live a perfect life. People live with goals, and in order to achieve these goals, they need to face difficulties. Being perfect is not easy and perhaps not even good.
Would Truman have been happier if the producers of the television program had introduced some problems into his life? This is certainly possible, but Truman thought he was happy in the simulation until he began to suspect his wife’s behavior. Truman was living in a false happiness. He had never shared genuine feelings with another person. Maybe this is why he was never truly happy. As viewers, we cannot know this for sure, but one thing we do know is that perfect or seemingly perfect lives are never as good as they appear. An outsider cannot understand this.
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