Theseus in modern culture : the labyrinth of inception

Abstract

Inception, a science fiction heist film written and directed by Christopher Nolan, is a highly imaginative and multi-layered voyage through the human mind, and a meditation on the elusive nature of reality. It blurs the boundaries between internal and exterior reality, offering the possibility of multiple levels of meaning and abolishing the line of demarcation that exists between fantasy and reality. The characters, together with the audience, tread the solid, reliable ground of a highly wrought reality, one shrouded by illusion and self-deception, until it collapses beneath their feet under the weight of another, more objective reality, revealing the abyss into which they must inevitably fall. Much like in the myth of Theseus, the abyss into which the character of Cobb falls into is a twisting labyrinth, a maze of tunnels concealing the beast that lies within.