How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #7
The TV set continued, "The 'moon' is painted; in the enlargements, one of which you see now on your screen, brush strokes show. And there is even some evidence that the scraggly weeds and dismal, sterile soil—perhaps even the stones hurled at Mercer by unseen alleged parties—are equally faked. It is quite possible in fact that the 'stones' are made of soft plastic, causing no authentic wounds." (18.41)
Mercerism is a video camera, a painted soundstage, and some future-magic technology. But people still experience it, so doesn't that make it real? What does it mean to be "real" anyway? What if nothing's real? (And what are all of you doing in our dorm room?)
Quote #8
"Where are you going? Won't you come downstairs and—be with me? There was the most shocking news on TV; Buster Friendly claims that Mercer is a fake. What do you think about that, Rick? Do you think it could be true?"
"Everything is true," [Rick} said. "Everything anybody has ever thought." (20.21-22)
Whoa, Rick is getting deep here. On the one hand, our thoughts do exist in reality since they occur in our brains, which last time we check were in reality. On the other hand, perhaps thoughts are too immaterial to count. What do you think, Shmoopers?
Quote #9
"It's strange," Rick said. "I had the absolute, utter, completely real illusion that I had become Mercer and people were lobbing rocks at me. But not the way you experience it when you hold the handles of an empathy box. When you use an empathy box you feel you're with Mercer. The difference is I wasn't with anyone; I was alone."
"They're saying now that Mercer is a fake."
"Mercer isn't a fake," he said. "Unless reality is a fake." (21.48-50)
Even things that are made-up become a part of reality in their own way. We haven't ever met a Frodo Baggins, but we bet you know who we're talking about. Mercer may not have had been an actual person, but his effect on reality has been, you know, real.