Memories of Manipulation

Leonard Shelby, the main character in Momento is similar to a typical consumer who is first exposed to advertisement and is constantly manipulated by it without their knowledge of its manipulation and therefore do not realize it affects them. Leonard’s lack of making new memories creates a huge possibility for others to manipulate his life. He could be lied to about his life after the accident to benefit others. But how is his ability to be manipulated much different than our ability to be manipulated? Even though we have the power to create new memories; others constantly manipulate us for their own good. What is so important about having those memories? Memories are crucial part of our life; they give us the power to believe that we are in power of our decisions even though we are constantly being manipulated. Does having the ability to know that you are being manipulated change the act of manipulation?