5.2 Idealism
Objective idealism
One can consider that reality is spiritual.
Ex. Brahman, the world soul (central to Hinduism) is the divine reality - some Hindus believe that material reality is fake and prevents us from seeing the true reality.
there is a perfect world, but we are not living in that reality at the moment.
It thus believes that there is a true, independent reality, just like materialism — BUT believes that the true reality, on the contrary, is non-material.
Believes that reality is objective - it does not depend on what anyone thinks or feels.
Believes that the external world is only apparent and that a ”Higher” (non-physical) reality exists there is an objective reality, it is just not the one we live in right now.
According to objective idealists, this exists independently of the human.
Does not take personal, subjective consciousness as the basis for what exists, but some kind of objective consciousness, one in general : ”World reason” , ”Universal will” and so on.
There is a reality even if we do not experience it
Subjective idealism
Berkleys Subjective idealism
The whole world always exists in God’s consciousness
The only thing i can be sure of is that my experience of something exists —> i.e. I can never know/prove that something exists outside of my experience of it.
Everything that exists must exist in a consciousness.
To be is to be perceived —> to be is to be sensed
Cannot find empirical evidence when it comes to subjective idealism.
The only thing that exists is mind impressions
If ten witnesses witness a car accident ,you can get ten different stories about what happened —> even if you have filmed the accident, the witnesses can interpret what they see in different ways.
A subjective idealist believes that this shows that you simply cannot say that there is a material reality.
For a materialist this isn’t a problem. They can argue that there is an objective, material reality.
Reality is personal, it is not experienced in the same way by others. ”Just because I experience something, I cannot be sure that you experience the same thing”
Is everything just experiences?
There is no objective reality
Cannot see subjective reality from someone else’s perspective
what we call reality changes with our experiences of it, so the only thing we can be sure of is the experiences.
It is not possible to prove an objective reality (Verklighet), since everyone experiences reality in their own, subjective way. It can look different denepending on who experiences it.
Believe that there is another substance and that there are some things, such as free will, the soul, near death experiences
Many religions make a distinction between the material world, which is described as full of various errors, and the spiritual world which is eternal and perfect.
Hinduism - the material world - Brahman/world soul
christianity - the material world - gods paradise
near death experience where people experience strong bonds to each other. It is not possible to explain materially, for example the spiritual dimension of love.
We experience the material world in different ways, the idealist believes that reality must be sought elsewhere.
5.1 Idealism
Critical realism = the world exists independently of us, but it is not exactly as we perceive it. Sense impressions partly show an objective reality, but some patts of reality only consist of subjective experiences.
Goes a bit hand in hand with idealism, objective idealism, reality exists completely independently of us.
As an idealist, you can live in the material world and devote yourself to measuring and weighing it, but the material world is not what is the real reality.
Reality consists of something other than materia (does not have to mean that you do not recognise the material world.
That does not mean that you cannot recognise reality, it still exists but it is not the real reality.
The only thing we can be sure of is our own experiences: I cannot answer that there is a real world, but on the other hand my experiences are real (SUBJECTIVE IDEALISM)
You cannot express yourself about the objective world, only the subjective world.
There is a reality without us experiencing it, but it does not consist of what we called materia (matter) (OBJECTIVE IDEALISM)
there is an objective reality but we are not there yet.
Can’t know for sure that there is a material reality?
5. Existens
Moral responsibility?
If I am hungry, its because the cells in my body need fuel. Sugar is fas fuel. So I take a piece of chocolate and put it in the shopping cart before i go to the checkout and pay. ———> soo.. what moral responsibility do we have if we have no free will?
If everything is governed by materia, so are our thoughts and behaviours.
Determinism & free will
Soft Determinism
We can be considered free if our actions are a result of our own will, not of any external coercion. According to soft determinism, free will and determinism are compatible.
Shares with the hard variant the view that everything that happens happens for a reason, but draws different conclusions about what this means for free will.
Hard Determinism
free will cannot exist if everything that happens is caused by previous events. If we could not have done anything other than what we did (under those circumstances) then we cannot be considered free.
The human and its surrounding is governed by materia (matter).
Humans consist of matter and various material processes - even emotions such as hate and love are a result of matter
Indeterminism (Free will)
This view is in good agreement with our experience of freedom when we chose high school, that we made an independent decision.
It is said that the awareness that one has made a decision is the illusion that we have free will.
There are psychological experiments that our nerves and synapses, that the brain makes a decision before we know consciously.
In every situation where we have acted, we could have done something different than what we did. There are no factors that cause our decisions, but they are free.
the idea that individuals can make decisions that are not predetermined by previous events or natural laws.
Materialism & Determinism
For some materialists, this leads to a deterministic view of the world —> that everything in the world can be predicted.
In principle, everything we can observe in the world can be explained by cause and effect.
The world governed only by matter - the world is dependent on physical processes and law.
Materialism rejects supernatural explanations — there is no God, no souls, no fate.
Dualism
Problem for a dualist is to explain how the non-material and the material can interact.
It is not valid according to the laws of nature, the problem for dualists is to explain non-material things. Descartes was a dualist.
Some things can be explained by material casual relationships, but there are also things like souls, consciousness, and free will.
Materialism
Realism = the world exists independently of us.
Matter exists independently of us, reality exists for us to discover
As a materialist, you mena that there is a world even if we do not experience it, idependently of us.
There is no spiritual plane
Think that there is nothing other than matter in the world, that is, things that we can measure, weigh, observe, count, etc.
Concepts to know
Monism = there is only one substance in the world — consciousness/soul or materia.
Only one substance, either the soul or materia or the body.
Dualism = there are two separate substances in the world — consciousness/soul and materia.
Idealism = the ”belief in a spiritual principle at the basis of the world, without the reduction of the physical world to a mere illusion”
No need to deny the existence of this world, but it is not the true reality.
There is another reality that we do not live in.
Materialism = all that exists is matter.
Critical realism = the world exists independently of us, but it is not of the nature exactly as we perceive it.
Realism = the world exists independently of us, and it is of the nature as we perceive it.
Metaphysics - the doctrine of what actually exists or does not exist. For example, can you be sure that there is a material world at all, or does the world only consist of different experiences of things? If we can find ourselves in simulated worlds, why can’t this world be a simulation? Time is a problem for our reality.
what is really real? Can we determine which reality is the true reality?
Today, modern technology gives us the opportunity to live in a world that is largely different from the physical ———> the distinction between the analog and digital worlds is beginning to blur.
Ontology = is the doctrine of what exists and what it means that something exists (being).
4. Vetenskap
Correlation & Causality
A correlation between variables means that the change in one variable is the cause of the change in the values of the other variable. Causation indicates that one event is the result of the occurrence of the other event; i.e. there is a causal relationship between the two events.
Qualitative method
It is the question that guides the method.
Both can collaborate to work together
Tries to reach a deeper understanding of what is being investigated
find certain causes, social sciences and humanities also use qualitative methods (interviews, reading and interpreting texts, and observations of interactions.)
Quantitative method
Important to be careful when looking for the causes of something = there is a difference between association and causes —>there is a difference between correlation and causality.
Are used by natural scientists but also other subjects such as psychology.
focuses on measurable data that can be expressed using numbers. Strives for statistical, quantifiable and usually generalisable results. Use of surveys to analyse large amounts of statistics and numbers.
Divisions of science
Others are interdisciplinary such as psychology and geography
Social science
sociology, law, politics, political science.
Humanities
Language, philosophy, history, religious studies
Natural science
physics, biology, mathematics, astronomy
Systematically and with scientific methods collecting and organising knowledge —> building theories
Examples of these are = experiments, measurements, observations and interviews.
Science is the endeavour to understand, explain and predict the world we live in.
3. Sanning
Pragmatic truth theory
There are also examples of people who have had ”use” from believing statements about reality that later turned out to be false.
Are there facts or knowledge that it is unlikely that anyone will have ”use” from - is this then automatically false? ”This water bottle is blue”
What is true now may not be true later
is truth changeable?
How it works in practice determines whether the statement is true or not.
Newtons theories are true because you could build steam engines and bridges with their help, Einsteins theories are true as long as they can be used to explode space, Freuds theories
Truth = usability/functionality
Pragmatism = focuses on the practical consequences of actions and statements, its applicability, function and usability for example, that the earth is round it practically works if we put a satellite in space.
A statement is true only if it works in practice/is the theory that works best
Koherens theory
PROBLEM
What is true for me may not be true for you.
Allows for different truth systems to exist side by side.
Is truth subjective/relative?
Tabula Rasa does not agree with koherens theory because we know that there are genetic traits that affect not only our sensory experiences of the world.
DEDUCTION
A rationalist and idealist theory of truth
Should be related to other things, must agree with how you define how other things should be.
”This water bottle is blue” is a true belief if it is consistent with all of ones other beliefs, e.g. how you define a water bottle and blue.
Maths and logic are constructed in accordance to coherence theory approach.
The symbols are part of a context. They are connected to each other, they get their truths if they are connected with other truths.
2 + 2 = 4, is true according to the definition of the symbols included.
The different statements in the system provide support for, or can be derived from, or constitute evidence for/proven by, each other.
There should be a connection between them.
A statement is only true if it is consistent/coherent with a system of other statements.
Korrespondens theory
PROBLEMS
We have different definitions of things, how would we find the true truth then?
”I see that the water is blue” but how can you be sure that it is true? It is possible to be mistaken —> Descartes scepticism.
Using any of the five sources of knowledge/reasons for knowledge?
How can you prove that somethings corresponds to reality?
what does correspondence/conformity actually mean?
The truth is still the truth, even if no one believes it, A lie is still a lie, even if everyone believes it.
Empirical theory of truth
EXAMPLE = ”This water bottle is blue” is a true statement if the water bottle referred to is actually blue.
Realism - the world exists independently of us
Truth is objective and absolute (independent of us)
A statement is true only if it corresponds/conforms to reality/facts
2. Knowledge
Empirism - experiences
Some empiricists may say that not all knowledge is acquired in this sense - rather that some knowledge is lost to us forever - our senses are not enough. ALTHOUGH there is no other way to reach knowledge.
We use our five senses to acquire knowledge
Locke
Tabula Rasa - the human is born as a blank papper - where the knowledge is derived from the experiences.
Went against the Catholic Church’s idea that knowledge is given through God.
No medfödd idéer
We get knowledge through our senses and experiences.
Essay Concerning Human Understanding - 1690
Knowledge is acquired
Get knowledge through experiences, sensory experiences, induction.
Rationalism - sense
Descartes
How does rationalism mean that we get knowledge about the material world?
Deductive method - one starts from general principles or axioms and draws specific conclusions. For example, according to Descartes, we can know that the material world exists because rational thinking (Cogito ergo sum)
We can reach knowledge about our material world through logical thinking and deductive reasoning. Built up of axioms, like maths and geometry.
Medfödda idéer - born with ideas and concepts that do not come from our experiences.
Scepticism against our sensory experiences.
It is by using reasoning to think clearly that we can reach knowledge about the world. Through our innate ideas, our ability to realise what is self-evidently true (axioms) and draw logical conclusions fro these truths (Deduction), that we can reach certain knowledge - NOT THROUGH OUR SENSES!
”I Think, Therefore I Am.”
I can doubt, if I can doubt then i must be able to think, I can think, If I can think then I must exist. (COGITO ERGO SUM)
Even possible that maths isn’t ”true” - how do I know its not a god or demon deceiving me?
Conclusion that our sensory experiences deceives us = Illusions, dreams, memory loss.
Wanted to find a secure group to build knowledge up.
You are born with knowledge.
Get knowledge through sense, thinking, deduction, & axioms.
”Post-sanning är pre-fascism… att överge fakta är att överge frihet” - Timothy Snyder
Scepticism
Problem with scepticism
Being to sceptical leads to questioning everything.
Doubt is the starting point
It is not possible to gain knowledge - Secure knowledge is not possible.
Definitions wise always true - unable to prove wrong
Basic for building up knowledge - necessary in maths, logic and geometry.
Self-evident premises/statements, which cannot be questioned or need to be proven.
Five ways to get knowledge
Self-evident truths/axioms
Induction
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Deduction
Slutledningsmetoder (Inference methods)
Memory
Own experiences/Direct observation
Theoretical definition of knowledge
Is true, one is convinced of/believes in, & one has good reasoning to believe.
Epistemology : Kunskapsteorin = the questioning of how we get knowledge.
Truth seeking
1. Logic
- Making certain claims in a clear and coherent way
- A set of propositions linked together to make one of the premises
- Built up of premises leading to a conclusion
Teaching the principles of clear and consistent reasoning
Inductive argument
Logically valid argument
The inductions conclusions are based on facts that came from the observation.
Example : I’ve looked through the room but have not found a mouse, therefore there is no mouse in the room.
Says that the premises truth increases the probability of the conclusion being true.
Deductive argument
Logically valid argument
Example : Venus is bigger than Saturn, Saturn is bigger than the Sun, therefore Venus is bigger than the Sun. (Doesn’t have to be true, just logically valid).
Chain argument, if a deductive argument is logically valid; it is impossible for the premises to be true but the conclusion to be false. The premises consistently support the conclusion, even if it is wrong.
Deduction derives the conclusions from the theory and with logical aspect.
Example : all humans är mortal, Socrates is a human, Socrates is mortal.
A fact that lead to another fact : fact + fact = conclusion.
Claims that the conclusions truth is guaranteed by the premises truth.
