1. Questions: To what extent do you agree with the views of either Errol Morris or Roger
Ebert with regard to the film Rashomon?
1. Introduction
a. Background information about Rashomon
b. A summary of Morris’ basic idea
c. A summary of Ebert’s basic idea
2. Thesis
a. I agree with Ebert idea because people see events differently due to their own
perspective, and thus truth is strongly associated with perception and reality is
very subjective.
3. Counter Argument
a. Although the four testimonies do not match at all, it could be true that only one of
them is telling the truth and three of them are lying. Some of the four testimonies
match. They all agreed that Tajomaru killed the Samurai. But the other parts of the
testimonies do not match at all.Thus, it is possible to seek the ultimate truth.
Distinguish appearance from reality theory: we might be misinterpreting things,
failing to notice something and misremembering things.
4. Argument 1
a. The four testimonies that do not match, Kurosawa’s idea that “Human beings are
unable to be honest with themselves about themselves. They cannot talk about
themselves without embellishing."
a. Refer to allegory of the cave.Allegory of the Cave: to anyone go inside the cave
and look at people who are chained in the cave, those chained people look like

2. they are just in the cave; however, for those who are chained, the cave is the
reality.
5. Argument 2
a. As the theory, “distinguish reality from appearance”, we may be misinterpreting,
failing to notice all details of an event and misremembering what we have seen. This
theory claims that we can not abundantly believe what we see because perception can
influence the way we see reality and thus what we see might not be the actual reality.
6. Conclusion.
a. Since Kurosawa provides us with the four testimonies that there is no one
objective truth, Ebert’s idea is supported that reality is subjective and the truth is
based on human interpretation.
b. Allegory of Cave: people see things differently, interpret differently, thus truth is
different depends on your perception.
c. “Distinguishing appearance from reality”: theory that also supports allegory of
the cave. People have different perception, thus result in different interpretation
because people might misinterpret, fail to notice things and misremember what
we have seen.