Quick Definitions
- Idealism: Mind or ideas are fundamental. Matter depends on mind.
- Materialism (Physicalism): Matter is fundamental. Mind arises from physical processes.
- Dualism: Mind and matter are distinct kinds of stuff.
Everyday Examples
Idealism lens: The world you experience is a structured field of perceptions; remove perception and the “world” dissolves.
Materialism lens: That feeling of awe is neural fireworks; change the brain, change the mind.
Dualism lens: Your conscious “I” seems irreducible—more than meat—so perhaps mind and matter are two.
Strengths & Trade-offs
| View | Strength | Trade-off |
|---|---|---|
| Idealism | Accounts for the immediacy of experience | Struggles with shared, stable facts |
| Materialism | Leverages science’s success with matter | Explaining qualia feels slippery |
| Dualism | Matches our inner sense of self | Mind–body interaction puzzle |
Mini-Quiz: What’s Your Default?
- Does changing the brain inevitably change the mind? (Materialism says yes.)
- Could a world exist with no observers? (Idealism doubts it.)
- Do you feel like a non-physical self steering a body? (Dualism nods.)