Our thoughts about the world

Our thoughts about the world are clearly influenced by such things as point of view, temperament, past experience and culture. However, some thinkers go much further and argue that everything that exists depends on us, arguing that "even reality is relative". Can we accept such a claim in the face of events such as floods and other natural disasters or events seemingly beyond our control? "Realists" argue that reality is independent of our thinking. "Relativists" disagree, arguing that what there is depends on our point of view.

About the author

Robert Kirk provides a crystal clear account of this debate from the Greek philosophers to Wittgenstein and Rorty. Along the way, he unpacks some of the more complicated issues surrounding ideas of objectivity, subjectivity, pragmatism and realism essential for those beginning any study of philosophy.