This is day # 9 of 30 days of blogs on philosophy. Over the next three days, I will continue to attempt to provide answers to some big life questions as a learning exercise
Before I sat down to write I couldn’t remember what my question for today was. So, I pulled out my phone and looked at my list of questions. I scrolled down today number four and saw it.
What is Reality?
Oof.
I don’t think it is a great question.
It’s the type of question that can just lead you down a rabbit hole. Where you start thinking too much about definitions and don’t end up getting anywhere.
Earlier this week I read Paul Graham’s article How to do Philosophy. The idea I related to was a process for philosophizing, where you start with something useful and concrete and then extend outwards to broader generalizations.
The example he gives is: “Joe’s has good burritos. What’s a good burrito? What is good food? What is good?”
I don’t think he would like the question “what is reality?” But nonetheless, we press on!
When I start tossing the question around in my head, the thoughts that come to mind are more around the question of “is there reality?” Is there an objective world around me, or is everything subjective. Are the things I see really there? Am I really here.
Could this all just be my imagination. Do things that no one is around to observe actually happen?
As I write this, I’m getting the feeling of walking myself into a problem that I won’t be able to get myself out of. Like I’m struggling to get to keep the core issues and ideas in front of me.
What is the core issue?
The issue and the confusion around it comes from the divide between the observer and the observed. Put in a less douchey way. It is about if things exist, separate from us, and we are observing them. Or if we simply imagine things that don’t exist.
I know from experience that I can experience things that I can say aren’t real. I can see stars when I stand up quickly and get a headrush. I can feel phantom vibrations. I can have vivid dreams. I can experience things that don’t exist. I know that my senses can lie to me, but the only way I have to evaluate reality is through my senses.
And this is where things can get confusing.
I can start to think that since I can’t be certain that things exist that therefore nothing is real. That since the only thing I know is my sensory experience, that the universe exists in my mind, and not outside of my body. That you are the center of the universe and that everything else is happening because of you.
Or, I can start to think that the things around me are real. That there is a universe all around me, and that I am just one tiny piece on the edge of it.
It’s easy to get the impression that you have to choose between the two options. That you can pick whether there is an objective reality or a subjective reality, but it certainly can’t be both.
But, what if it could be.
What if you can understand that it certainly is possible that everything is subjective, but that we know enough about things that we can have faith in them continuing to be the way that they are.
I’ve probably lost a few of you while I’ve been off in abstract-land. I’ve almost lost myself a couple of times. So let’s try to focus on something more concrete.
The question of if there is an external reality or not doesn’t actually matter that much to our day to day lives.
Everyone who would tell you that reality doesn’t exist still has to act like it does. They don’t walk into walls because they have learned that it is extremely unlikely that you can pass through solid things. They still sit down on chairs, because they have experienced that you can rest on solid-looking things without falling through them.
People express their philosophies, not through their statements, but instead through their actions. You can listen to a university professor tell you that “reality doesn’t exist”, but if you spent a day following him around, he certainly acts like it does. He follows the rules of reality. He eats, he sleeps, he stays stuck to the surface of the earth without floating away. He carefully drives his car home avoiding the other cars on the road.
On one hand we have to accept that we don’t know if this is all just an elaborate illusion. Accept that it might be, but at the same time accept that there are rules to this game. That if you walk into a wall it will hurt, that if you don’t eat you will die, and that if you connect with a friend you will feel happy.
The mug on my desk might just be a figment of my imagination, but you still probably don’t want me to throw it at you.
I’m going through these questions to clarify my thinking on them, and hopefully, provide value to others who are reading. If you agree or disagree with me, I would love to hear from you in the comments! Let me know how you would answer this question, or what you think my answer is missing!
Leave a Reply