Issues with Idealism
LO: to understand some objections to idealism
and evaluate their success.
Key question:
Do you think that ‘a thought of a tree’ is the same as the tree
itself?
The Master Argument
• Try to conceive of a tree which exists outside of any
mind – a tree which no one has any awareness of.
• In attempting to establish this tree, you may think of
the idea of a tree hidden in a forest somewhere no
one has ever been.
• But by doing this, you are constructing the idea in
your mind!
• Since any supposed thought of an object outside
any mind can only take place in someone’s mind,
the idea of a mind-independent object is
contradictory.
Ok, but what objections can we think of?
Prepare a short presentation
Issue 1 illusions and hallucinations – Martha and
Pippa
Issue 2 the continued existence of things – Elisa and
Alex
Issue 3 Regularity of the universe – Lily and Eleanor
(blue book pages 41-42)
Step 1:
Read through the section in the blue book
a) Write down anything that you believe opposes idealism.
b) Write down anything that you believe acts as a response
by idealism to this issue.
Step 2:
• Summarise what you have written into 3 key points.
Questions to consider:
1. What key point best sums up this issue for idealism?
2. Can you give an example to help explain this issue?
3. Do you think the idealist offers a persuasive response
to the issue?
Issue 4
The trap of Solipsism.
What is Solipsism?
Read page 35 and write an answer to this Q.
Some say that Idealism seems to fall into solipsism
–if you only have direct access to sense data in the
mind then it leads to scepticism about the existence
of anything beyond the mind.
Therefore all I can know is that my own mind exists.
Homework
• Check you have good notes on the 4 issues
• Blue book pages 41-43