Idealism in philosophy is a trend that claims that our spirit, subconscious and conscious, thoughts, dreams and everything spiritual are primary. The material aspect of our world is considered to be something derivative. In other words, the spirit gives rise to matter, and without thought there can be no object.
General concepts
Based on this, many skeptics believe that idealism in philosophy is wishful thinking. They give examples where convinced idealists plunge into the world of their dreams, regardless of whether they concern a specific person or the whole world. Now we will consider two main varieties of idealism and compare them. It is also worth noting that both of these concepts, although often characterized by opposite dogmas, are the exact opposite of realism.
Objective idealism in philosophy
The objective current in philosophical science appeared in ancient times. In those years, people still did not share their teachings as such, so this name did not exist. The father of objective idealism is considered to be Plato, who concluded the whole world around people in the framework of myth and divine stories. One of his statements has passed through the centuries and is still a peculiar slogan of all idealists. It consists in disinterestedness, in the fact that the idealist is a person who strives for higher harmony, for higher ideals, despite minor adversities and problems. In antiquity, a similar course was also supported by Proclus and Plotinus.
This philosophical science reaches its climax during the Middle Ages. In these dark centuries, idealism in philosophy is the church’s absolute power, which explains any phenomenon, any thing and even the fact of human existence as an act of the Lord. The objective idealists of the Middle Ages believed that the world as we see it was built by God in six days. They completely denied evolution and any other gradations of man and nature that could lead to development.
In modern times, idealists have separated from the church. In their teachings, they tried to convey to people the nature of one spiritual principle. As a rule, objective idealists preached the idea of universal peace and understanding, the realization that we are all one, which can achieve the highest harmony in the universe. On the basis of such semi-utopian judgments idealism was built in philosophy. This trend was represented by such personalities as G.V. Leibniz, G. Hegel, F.V. Schelling.
Subjective idealism in philosophy
This trend was formed around the 17th century, in those years when there was even the slightest opportunity to become a free person, independent of the state and the church. The essence of subjectivity in idealism is that a person builds his world through thoughts and desires. Everything that we see, feel, is only our world. Another individual builds it in his own way, respectively, otherwise sees and perceives it. Such “isolated” idealism in philosophy is a kind of visualization as a model of reality. Representatives of subjective idealism are I. G. Fichte, J. Berkeley, and also D. Hume.