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What is reality? Or, Victor Trevor on Metaphysics |
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Since we were first in existence, human beings have asked themselves some basic questions. What am I perceiving, how do I know it’s real, what is existence? Metaphysics attempts to answer some of these questions. It is concerned with what the fundamental truths of this world may be. Reality’s nature is ephemeral, which sounds paradoxical, but since our perceptions shape our reality, it is true. Existence, the fact that you are your own individual, thinking person, is necessary before we can create realities. In other words, through your consciousness, you shape realities.
Reality cannot exist without perception. Thus, it cannot have a true nature, since perception is so individual. For example, a person with a certain type of synaesthesia might see this essay as being written in a rainbow of colours, though I perceive that I am typing it in a black font. Her perception, her reality is that my essay is extremely colourful, though mine is that the essay’s black and white. Someone who’s colour-blind might see a chemical as grey when it’s really red, and this is his reality. I observe that a man ran in front of a woman when she hit him on her bicycle, but you observe that she hit him and it was solely her fault. My reality is that he tried to get hit, yours is that it is her fault alone. You couldn’t have perceived what I did, and I couldn’t see what you’ve observed, so reality for me isn’t that it’s her fault, and your reality isn’t that it’s his. This is why reality is so variable, so capricious. Reality doesn’t have a single nature we can pinpoint but that it is a collection of our perceptions and what we believe to be true.
There is not universal reality. We must create our own truths and our own realities. You mould your own reality – it is essential to do this to have a reality. There are no absolutes, though of course we have realities. These aren’t mutually exclusive. Reality is composed of all that you sense, you observe, you feel, you live. I live in India and work for a tea company. My friends work as a sculptress, a consulting detective, and a composer. They live in Italy, England, Argentina. Their experiences are vastly different from mine. They see things differently than I ever could. I might mention an exotic spice or music they'd never even tasted or heard of. They may have a different word for something I don't know.
I could go on for longer, really, but I doubt you care. If you do, comment below and plead with me for more philosophy. I need to go back to my job, now. You're all beautiful people. It's pretty fantastic.
Victor Trevor · Tue Dec 18, 2012 @ 01:33am · 0 Comments |
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