Meme Termination

Right in the middle of Terminator 2 is a five minute scene where John realizes that he can train the Terminator's social instincts. It's hilarious. He spends about 60 seconds dumping a collection of social memes into the Terminator, who promptly follows the instructions and implements them properly. It's one of the more widely-spread examples of meme propogation in a popular movie I've seen — and if you stretch the analogy, it's like building an RPG character up in ZAngband. Charisma low, strength high.

A few scenes later, the mother is shown watching a family in the distance with momentary envy and sadness. I see in it the portrayal of the separation between those who must do something, and those who are at rest. It's interesting how this strikes me personally; I know that I'll never have a simple life, thanks to the choices I've made – and perhaps that's not a bad thing, in the end. Sometimes, though, I wish it were simpler. Dating, school, jobs; all those things would be within easy reach; apparently I've chosen paths that lead towards complexity.