This article is about the philosophical theory. For the critical theory, see Irrealism (the arts).

Irrealism is a philosophical position first advanced by Nelson Goodman in "Ways of Worldmaking",^[1] encompassing epistemology, metaphysics and aesthetics. Irrealism is a term that has been used by various writers in the fields of philosophy, literature, and art to denote specific modes of unreality and/or the problems in concretely defining reality. ... Nelson Goodman (7 August 1906, Somerville, Maryland – 25 November 1998) was an American philosopher, known for his work on counterfactuals, mereology, the problem of induction, and aesthetics. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Knowledge. ... Plato and Aristotle, by Raphael (Stanza della Segnatura, Rome). ... Kittens are often considered quite cute. ...

Nelson Goodman

Irrealism was initially motivated by the debate between Phenomenalism and Physicalism in Epistemology.^[2] Rather than viewing either as prior to the other, Goodman described them both as alternative "world-versions", both useful in some circumstances, but neither capable of capturing the other in an entirely satisfactory way, a point he emphasizes with examples from psychology.^[3] He goes on to extend this epistemic pluralism to all areas of knowledge, from equivalent Formal systems in mathematics (sometimes it is useful to think of points as primitives, sometimes it is more useful to consider lines the primitive) to alternative schools of art (for some paintings thinking in terms of representational accuracy is the most useful way of considering them, for others it is not). However, in line with his consideration of Phenomenalism and Physicalism, Goodman goes beyond saying merely that these are "world-versions" of the world, instead he describes worlds as "made by making such versions".^[4] It is in this identification of world and version that the core of irrealism is generally taken to lie.^{[citation needed]} In epistemology and the philosophy of perception, phenomenalism is the view that physical objects do not exist as things in themselves but only as perceptual phenomena or sensory stimuli (e. ... Physicalism is the metaphysical position (associated particularly with Quine) that everything is physical; that is, that there are no kinds of things other than physical things. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Knowledge. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Knowledge. ... It has been suggested that Pluralistic perspective be merged into this article or section. ... In logic, mathematics, and computer science, a formal system is a formal grammar used for modelling purposes. ... Euclid, a famous Greek mathematician known as the father of geometry, is shown here in detail from The School of Athens by Raphael. ... The Bath, a painting by Mary Cassatt (1891-1892). ... In epistemology and the philosophy of perception, phenomenalism is the view that physical objects do not exist as things in themselves but only as perceptual phenomena or sensory stimuli (e. ... Physicalism is the metaphysical position (associated particularly with Quine) that everything is physical; that is, that there are no kinds of things other than physical things. ...

Ontologically, Goodman's irrealism is distinct from anti-realism though the two concepts are frequently confused. Goodman claims "Any raw stuff is as much a creature of a version as what is made out of that stuff." ^[5] It appears that he makes no assertions regarding "the way the world is" and that there is no primary world version i.e. "no true version compatible with all true versions." It follows that Goodman accepts many forms of realism and anti-realism without apparently being troubled by the resulting contradictions.

Other Irrealists

The philosophical term may be used in more specific or arguably narrower senses, such as "colour irrealism".[1]

Irrealist artist/philosopher Tristan Tondino's approach to Irrealism is somewhat odd in that his articles, thought experiments, responses are frequently carried out on paintings and drawings. The most “philosophical” paintings are his Lettrist Abstractions that include statements often in English but not limited to English. Some examples are: “The Rule of the 2”, “A Meaningless Painting”, “Venise n’est pas en Italie”, “A Thing is not a Thing”, "2 Plus 2 is a Drawing, Two Plus Two is a Song" and “Y14”. The following excerpt is from Tondino's painting entitled "The Spirit of the Sprirt of the Demon". (Response to C.Z. Elgin's Scepticism Aside)

Perhaps, the Demon is our greatest friend? What she is trying so desperately to teach is neither that we should be frozen before action nor that there is no truth. Rather, our Demon is nothing other than a representation of the infinite nature of the Real. Call her Demon, God, Reality, Fairy God Mother, thing-in-itself, Everything, the really real - it doesn’t really matter. She (the Demon) represents that thing which we may never fully describe; irrespective of which world version we make. Alas, the Demon has a Spirit and that Spirit another Demon ad infinitum. She (the Demon) is teaching us uncertainty, openness to alternative versions. There is no doubt in my mind, that, it is not more belief, truth and certainty that we crave on this sad and lonely little planet but a great deal more humility. Skepticism does not imply “no world version is better than any other”. Not that anything goes but that some things go and some things flop. After all, the judgment regarding which version is better is up to the Demon not us.^[6]

This excerpt attempts to answer the objections leveled by many, that Irrealism's necessary relativism implies "anything goes" or "any system is as good as any other". It is frequently argued that Irrealism is fully subjectivist. However, Tondino's response suggests that the idea of "objectivity" is the "thing the universe controls", not the scientist, mathematician, historian. In another work called Versions he claims "Versions are never objective. They either succeed or fail based on the hegemony of the Real."

See also

• Anti-realism
• Philosophical realism
• Realism

In philosophy, the term anti-realism is used to describe any position involving either the denial of the objective reality of entities of a certain type or the insistence that we should be agnostic about their real existence. ... Contemporary philosophical realism is the belief in and allegiance to a reality that exists independently of observers. ... Realism is commonly defined as a concern for fact or reality and rejection of the impractical and visionary. ...

External links

• "On Star-Making" by Nelson Goodman.

Footnotes

1. ^ (Goodman 1978)
2. ^ (Goodman 1951)
3. ^ (Goodman 1978 : Ch. V)
4. ^ (Goodman 1978 94)
5. ^ (Goodman 1984)
6. ^ Tondino 2006, from the painting: The Spirit of the Spirit of Skepticism

References

• Goodman, N. [1951] (1977). The Structure of Appearance, 3rd, D. Reidel Publishing Co..
• Goodman, N. [1976] (1984). Languages of Art, 2nd, Indianapolis: Hackett Publishing Company, Inc.. ISBN 0915144344.
• Goodman, N. (1978). Ways of Worldmaking. Indianapolis: Hackett Publishing Company, Inc.. ISBN 0915144514.
• Goodman, N. (1983). Of Mind and Other Matters. Harvard University Press.
• Goodman, N.; Elgin, C.Z. (1988). Reconceptions in Philosophy & Other Arts & Sciences. London: Routledge. ISBN 0415048869.
• (1996) McCormick, P.J. Starmaking: Realism, Anti-Realism and Irrealism. Cambridge, Massachusetts: The MIT Press. ISBN 0262133203.
• (1997) Elgin, C.Z. The Philosophy of Nelson Goodman, Volume 1: Nominalism, Constructivism, and Relativism in the Work of Nelson Goodman. New York and London: Garland Publishing Inc.. ISBN 0815326092.
• (1997) Elgin, C.Z. The Philosophy of Nelson Goodman, Volume 4: Nelson Goodman's Theory of Symbols and Its Applications. New York and London: Garland Publishing Inc.. ISBN 0815326122.