Very interesting essay. The question of what is real and what is only a fabrication can be asked and answered forever. I'm not a philosopher, so I can't begin to explore all of the facets here, but on a very pragmatic level, I no longer believe most of what I read or see on social media. And when it comes to "news," I've become so skeptical that it takes me forever to get through an article because I'm fact-checking more than taking in the whole story.
On a different level, harkening back to Philosophy 101, I agree with George Berkeley that reality is a mental construct, different for each of us. It's no wonder we can't communicate. We're all seeing the topics from our own worlds.
Well, now I'm rambling and not adding to the dialogue. I enjoyed reading your post today. Thanks.
Thanks so much for reading and letting me know that you liked it. This is energizing. I think this topic can be answered in a philosophical way. That is good. But, I meant it much more as a straightforward, non-philosophical question. Your word pragmatic fits perfectly as to my thinking here. I think to myself: What do people mean when they refer to the real world? Is it something natural, or does that term just refer to something hard and stressful--since this is what much of life looks like. Does it refer to a kind of lifestyle that is slipping away? I really do not know. I think the Internet could be more or less real depending on how you look at it. As you know, I like questions. It seems people have more so decided, as you hint at, that the world has become more fake and less real.
I'm more comfortable with the pragmatic and tangible. I'll leave the more esoteric philosophical discussions about reality to the philosophers and poets. Glad we're on the same page.
My (lived) perspective of reality: an ever-evolving expanding change in consciousness. Thanks for sharing your thoughts (and the comment responses), which resonate much with mine. 🫂
I think the real world is a gigantic, multifaceted thing, and we’re all like the proverbial blindfolded people trying to describe an elephant. I’m convinced the real world is out there, but it’s filtered through so much personal and social noise that it’s different for every person and group.
Thoreau is an interesting example. He partially removed himself from society to get a more clear-eyed view of both society and nature. It’s tempting to see this as fake and privileged (he famously had a lot of help during his time at the cabin, for instance). But it also led to “Civil Disobedience,” which had a profound impact on society.
I used to teach nature writing as part of my composition classes. The students would always lament about coming back to “the real world” from time spent in nature and I’d respond with “are you sure nature isn’t the real world and civilization just a fantasy?” Back in the ‘90s and early 2000s, you could make a good case that both civilization and nature were equally real (not to mention the distinction being arbitrary). But our current civilization seems highly unreal to me (and probably to a lot of people, given the popularity of this new saying, “touch grass.”)
I like your take, and thank you. I also love your question to your class. I guess I could or maybe should have asked: What do people mean when they say the real world? That little change makes a huge difference. I see your point on Thoreau. His experiment has always fascinated me. I like the interplay between nature and civilization and what each represents. It seems to me that so many people now seek to leave their current lifestyle in attempts to reach a real world, usually based on nature. Do we base the real world on how people once lived before big cities? So there is a time element involved. I am also interested in natural world vs real world, as they may not be the same things. As you can see I get lost in my questions. I really appreciate when someone answers especially a thoughtful answer like this one. The right questions are more important than the right answers in my pov, but that is yet another question added to the pile. (In response to Larry)
Very interesting essay. The question of what is real and what is only a fabrication can be asked and answered forever. I'm not a philosopher, so I can't begin to explore all of the facets here, but on a very pragmatic level, I no longer believe most of what I read or see on social media. And when it comes to "news," I've become so skeptical that it takes me forever to get through an article because I'm fact-checking more than taking in the whole story.
On a different level, harkening back to Philosophy 101, I agree with George Berkeley that reality is a mental construct, different for each of us. It's no wonder we can't communicate. We're all seeing the topics from our own worlds.
Well, now I'm rambling and not adding to the dialogue. I enjoyed reading your post today. Thanks.
Thanks so much for reading and letting me know that you liked it. This is energizing. I think this topic can be answered in a philosophical way. That is good. But, I meant it much more as a straightforward, non-philosophical question. Your word pragmatic fits perfectly as to my thinking here. I think to myself: What do people mean when they refer to the real world? Is it something natural, or does that term just refer to something hard and stressful--since this is what much of life looks like. Does it refer to a kind of lifestyle that is slipping away? I really do not know. I think the Internet could be more or less real depending on how you look at it. As you know, I like questions. It seems people have more so decided, as you hint at, that the world has become more fake and less real.
I'm more comfortable with the pragmatic and tangible. I'll leave the more esoteric philosophical discussions about reality to the philosophers and poets. Glad we're on the same page.
My (lived) perspective of reality: an ever-evolving expanding change in consciousness. Thanks for sharing your thoughts (and the comment responses), which resonate much with mine. 🫂
Thank you and you are welcome. Do not be a stranger. I love comments. I wish more people actually read and commented.
Good essay and very thought-provoking!
I think the real world is a gigantic, multifaceted thing, and we’re all like the proverbial blindfolded people trying to describe an elephant. I’m convinced the real world is out there, but it’s filtered through so much personal and social noise that it’s different for every person and group.
Thoreau is an interesting example. He partially removed himself from society to get a more clear-eyed view of both society and nature. It’s tempting to see this as fake and privileged (he famously had a lot of help during his time at the cabin, for instance). But it also led to “Civil Disobedience,” which had a profound impact on society.
I used to teach nature writing as part of my composition classes. The students would always lament about coming back to “the real world” from time spent in nature and I’d respond with “are you sure nature isn’t the real world and civilization just a fantasy?” Back in the ‘90s and early 2000s, you could make a good case that both civilization and nature were equally real (not to mention the distinction being arbitrary). But our current civilization seems highly unreal to me (and probably to a lot of people, given the popularity of this new saying, “touch grass.”)
I like your take, and thank you. I also love your question to your class. I guess I could or maybe should have asked: What do people mean when they say the real world? That little change makes a huge difference. I see your point on Thoreau. His experiment has always fascinated me. I like the interplay between nature and civilization and what each represents. It seems to me that so many people now seek to leave their current lifestyle in attempts to reach a real world, usually based on nature. Do we base the real world on how people once lived before big cities? So there is a time element involved. I am also interested in natural world vs real world, as they may not be the same things. As you can see I get lost in my questions. I really appreciate when someone answers especially a thoughtful answer like this one. The right questions are more important than the right answers in my pov, but that is yet another question added to the pile. (In response to Larry)