The Free

Out walking, I came to a field in which were a large number of people tied by various lengths of rope to posts stuck in the ground, around which they were walking. Though the circumference of the individual's world was determined by the length of his rope, each seemed oblivious to its very existence.
It was hard to hear but I did catch a snatch or two of conversation. "I am free." "Yes, we are all free."
And also, thanks to a little stealth, this exchange between two haughty looking men who were attached to cords of slightly longer length than the norm. "They think they are free but are not." The other smiled. "True, but we are."
The other chuckled. "Of course. And our awareness of their not being free makes us all the more so." I walked on.