The concept of reality has different interpretations, because it is affected by both objectivity and subjectivity. To many people, something that should be classified as real ought to be accepted by many people. That implies that it has to go through some form of validation. On the other hand, there are those people who argue that reality ought to be subjective. Even if people do not agree with someone’s perception of reality, he or she should stick to what he or she believes is the reality. Evidently, there is need to discuss about reality because of these two arguments. To discuss about reality, two theories are presented: Existentialism and pragmatism.
Existentialism, as a philosophy advocates for personal freedom, individual existence, and choice. On the same note, existentialists believe that people define their own meaning in life and make their own rational decisions despite living in an irrational world (Abbagnano, 2018). In particular, this philosophy emphasizes on subjectivity as opposed to objectivity. Individuals have the responsibility to choose what appeals to them. In regard to reality, people should only look up to themselves and hold onto their beliefs. That means they should not let the views of other people in regard to reality influence them. However, the main criticism of this philosophy is that people will have different interpretations of various phenomena, and consequently, reality. If people were to believe only in themselves, and oppose other people’s views, would there not be chaos? Holding different views would likely lead to conflict because people would never agree on anything.
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The philosophy of pragmatism emphasizes on practicality of ideas. It is a philosophy that looks at the consequences of ideas or propositions before ascertaining that it is reality. Therefore, pragmatists believe that for something to be real, it must always be tested to affirm that it works (Rosenthal & Thayer, 2018). Things that do not work are considered illusions or unreal. The most prominent criticism of pragmatism is that ideas, which fail during testing are labelled as unreal. The failure of such ideas may be as a result of improper testing or the lack of the capacity to test them. Someone may have seen something happen in reality but may be able to prove it. Seemingly, pragmatism advocates for objectivity, where someone must prove something to a group of people for a phenomenon to be perceived as a reality.
In regard to the comparison of the two theories, pragmatism seems to be more acceptable about reality. Looking at existentialism, people may hold onto beliefs, especially cultural, which may not be really true. There have been cultures that have had beliefs and practices that are harmful and discriminatory. If people are allowed to believe in such beliefs, some people may be discriminated unfairly. Pragmatism seeks to unravel such beliefs to establish whether they represent the truth or reality. If the beliefs are tested and found not to work, they are disregarded. The positive aspect about pragmatism is that ideas are tested in the presence of both proponents and critics. The proof has to be beyond any reasonable doubt and must be accepted by everyone.
Conclusively, reality can be both subjective (existentialism) and objective (pragmatism). For existentialism, individual responsibility or decisions may conflict with other people’s views. For a phenomenon to be accepted as reality, it should be accepted by everyone. People should not authoritatively say something is real when it does not work or happen for/to others. There should be universality for something to be considered real. Therefore, pragmatism is a better perception of reality because for something to be affirmed to be a reality, it must be tested to establish that it works.
References
Abbagnano, N. (2018). Existentialism. Definition, Nature, History, & Issues . Encyclopedia Britannica . Retrieved 12 November 2018, from https://www.britannica.com/topic/existentialism
Rosenthal, S. & Thayer, H.S. (2018). Pragmatism: philosophy . Encyclopedia Britannica . Retrieved 12 November 2018, from https://www.britannica.com/topic/pragmatism-philosophy
