Reality

In the third unit of the class Who am I? which is simply called Doubt, the class learned about the different doubts that we experience, and how it influences our lives. For the third action project the class was assigned to make up our own guiding question that is unique to us, and makes our mind go into deeper perspectives, while thinking. My guiding question(s) were what is reality and is it the same for everyone? Right away the most difficult part with writing my essay was thinking about my own reality. I had to actually think about how I see the world, and the things that surround me. I had to also try to understand the different realities that some people go through. Even though I had a hard time trying to understand everything, I am proud that I was able to pursue a question that made the wheels inside my brain turn, and make a essay out of it. Thanks to this project, I learned the importance of trying to understand, and respect everyone's own reality. 

Myers,Ken. Photograph. 2012

I have always wondered, what is reality and is it the same for everyone? I want to know if people see the world the same as I do. Reality is something that you think you’re in touch with. At the same time you are, but not really because you are in touch with your own only.  Automatically you think what you see, hear or believe is reality. Aristotle believed that the physical world is real. Another different philosophical view on reality would be with Humes. He believed that reality is based on an expectation you make, and it usually causes life to be a bit more doubtful.

Universally, people struggle with reality or the missing part of it. You do not realize that you struggle with that, because you always think you are in touch with it. We often make the mistake of always thinking that everyone experiences the same reality as us, or thinks the same. They don’t. One example of a different reality would be when you are mad, frustrated,or disappointed by someone. When you are going through that inconstancy, you are experiencing a conflicting reality. You see the situation different from them.

The best way to explain the idea of different realities would be the example of Plato and the Allegory of the cave. While in the cave, the people that were in chains are being shown shadows and lead to believe that, that is the only reality, because that is all they see. That example would show how we all perceive things differently, and therefore we all have a different perception on reality. Plato’s main lesson of the cave is that people usually see reality as the visible world, when reality is more than just that. Plato also states how we are like the slaves in the cave. We live in a world of shadows because we don’t see the reality of ideas.

In order to pursue this question even farther, I tried researching on how humanity tries to convince us, that we can live a total different “reality” outside the real world. In todays days it it very easy to convince yourself to live a different life, using social media and other websites. I checked out the website Second life. From there I saw how an avatar can take up many forms including a human, animal, plant, vegetable, or residents can decide to resemble themselves as they are in real life. Second life Culture includes the many activities and behavior that are present in the real world. The problem with that is that many people get hooked to it, and since it includes many real life activities, players feel compelled to keep playing or “living”. The idea of the whole game or “life” is to simply live a second life,or convincing yourself that you are in a whole different reality. Psychologists state that many people go to these websites to try to escape from the reality that they already know, and try to create a new one for themselves.

My guiding question fits in with Wilhelm’s definition because some people might think no, we all have the same reality and see the world the same, while other people have their own definition on how they look at life and reality, and how they decide those reasons to influence their life. 

From researching and understanding the philosophical views and psychological views on reality, I came to the conclusion that even though there is only one reality, everyone has their own.  We all perceive in different ways, and we decide to see the world and live life, using that perception, whether its the same or not the same from most people around you. Everyone’s world and reality is shaped by their own experiences and thoughts, both good and bad.