Since the time of Ancient Greece, philosophers have attempted to define the ultimate reality of the universe. In these early times, two primary schools of thought formed with regard to this reality, or metaphysics. These were Idealism and Naturalism. Plato, the originator of Idealism, argued that basic thoughts, or ideals, formed the basis for all that is. Naturalists on the other hand, have contended that substance or laws are the ultimate constituents of reality. While both sides have merit, it is the Naturalists’ argument that more readily provides a realistic and rational explanation for the world in which we live.
Thales, who lived in the 6th Century BC, is regarded by many to be the first Greek philosopher. According to Bertrand Russell “Western philosophy begins with Thales.[1] Aristotle claimed that he was the first person to truly investigate the ultimate reality of the universe.[2] He began the Naturalist view that one basic substance forms the basis for reality. Following Thales were Leucippus, Democratus, Epicurus, and Lucretius. Known as Naïve Naturalists, these Greeks believed that atoms were the most basic building blocks of substance. Much later, in the 17th Century, Thomas Hobbes continued the tradition of Naïve Naturalism. While he did not believe that there existed anything so small that it could not be further subdivided, Hobbes did feel that there are indeed bodies made of some substance that exist outside of us, and that form the entire universe. Not all Naturalists, however, think that it is matter itself that forms ultimate reality. Critical Naturalists like Auguste Comte and Herbert Schneider believed that it was the laws and relationships that governed the movement of matter that was the most fundamental component of reality.
The opposing viewpoint to Naturalism, Idealism, was founded in the 4th Century BC by Plato. To Plato, ultimate reality exists prior to anything else in a perfect form. These ideals, such as the perfect circle, or the concept of beauty, exist in the mind of God first, and man brings this knowledge with him into the world. He then recognizes objects in this world by how they compare with the ideal forms he already has imprinted in his mind. Many of the major religions of the world have borrowed from Idealism the idea that God, with his knowledge of the perfect form, is the originator of all that is. A spiritual reality exists outside of the world which is readily accessible to the mere mortal, from which the universe flows.
The two schools of thought are not without similarities, however. This is especially true when one compares Critical Naturalism with Idealism. To Comte, a Critical Naturalist, the highest form of reality is math: the concepts of mathematical relationships are always true. An Idealist might argue this is proof that an ideal concept of math exists in the spiritual world and is being manifested in the physical world. But this is not necessary; 1+1=2 is an innate characteristic of the material universe and arises together with the existence of matter, not before. This mathematical relationship is derived after the fact, after it has been observed to be true.
A primary flaw in Idealism is that it requires something beyond the tangible and immediate reality of matter. It is based on the presupposition that basic forms exist somewhere else, such as in the mind of God, a priori. There is no evidence nor logical necessity to support the idea that men come into this world with ideas of perfect triangles or squares already in their minds. Naturalism provides a simpler and more elegant explanation; the mind is more or less a blank slate at birth, and through observing many different triangles over a period at time, the mind arrives at the most basic unifying characteristics through reason. There is no need for an ideal that existed before this time, the ideal triangle was created in the mind of man.
Naturalism on the other hand simply defines what can be seen. It does not posit the existence of something supernatural that exists outside of what can be measured. Ultimate reality is, first, matter; after which minds of men observe and reason therefrom. Mind in itself is not an ideal form beyond the physical, it is as much a part of the material world as anything else. Just as certain configurations of a basic substance can form all the observable phenomena from liquid water, to electrical current, to gravitational attraction, so too does mind spontaneously emerge when conditions in that basic substance are just right so as to be conducive to its existence.
Works Cited
1. Russell, Bertrand. The History of Western Philosophy. 1945
2. Fieser, James. “Thales of Miletus”. Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy. December 5, 2009.
