Realism (original) (raw)

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Principle |Discussion | See also

Principle

Things exist, whether or not anyone is thinking of them.

Discussion

A perennial problem of philosophy is what really exists independently of people and what is a product of our minds. Even if we accept the existence of concrete things, then the question continues into more intangible concepts such as 'yellow' and 'happiness'.

Realism goes back to Pre-Socratic Greeks such as Parmenides, but for modern purposes was reawoken by such as psychologist William James and Bertrand Russell as a reaction against the increasingly ethereal Idealism, which was questioning the existence of anything.

See also

Empiricism