Belief that only mental entities are real, so that physical things exist only in the sense that they are perceived Berkeley defended his "immaterialism" on purely empiricist grounds, while Kant and Fichte arrived at theirs by transcendental arguments German, English, and (to a lesser degree) American philosophy during the nineteenth century was dominated by the monistic absolute idealism of Hegel, Bradley, and Royce Recommended Reading: David Berman, George Berkeley: Idealism and the Man (Oxford, 1996) {at Amazon com}; German Idealist Philosophy, ed by Rudiger Bubner (Penguin, 1997) {at Amazon com}; The Cambridge Companion to German Idealism, ed by Karl Ameriks (Cambridge, 2001) {at Amazon com}; John Foster, The Case for Idealism (Routledge, 1982) {at Amazon com}; and Current Issues in Idealism, ed by Paul Coates and Daniel D Hutto (St Augustine, 1997) {at Amazon com} Also see OCP, IEP, BGHT, ISM, ColE, DPM, CE, noesis, and MacE
The practice or habit of giving or attributing ideal form or character to things; treatment of things in art or literature according to ideal standards or patterns; opposed to realism
a theory that affirms that the spiritual, mental, and ideal is of central importance in reality Idealists often hold that reality itself is essentially spiritual or the embodiment of mind or reason
Idealism is the theory that the only things that exist are minds and their contents, e g pains, beliefs, desires, sensations of sounds, afterimages Although "idealistic" is often used in ordinary speech to describe persons who have 'ideals', i e ambitions to better themselves or the world at large, this is not the sense of "idealism" being used in this book Here, "idealism" is the name of a metaphysical thesis which contrasts, in the first instance, with materialism (See also "materialism" )
The philosophy that holds that reality is based in ideas, knowledge is mental or spiritual, and values are determined through authority
the view that the existence of objects depends wholly or in part on the minds of those perceiving them or that reality is composed of minds and their states There are many varieties of idealism, ranging from Plato's doctrine of independently existing ideas or forms to Berkeley's subjective idealism and Hegel's absolute idealism Kant attempted to combine empirical realism with transcendental idealism
A theory of ontology which claims that the physical universe is fundamentally mental in nature and exists as a state or aspect of mind
the metaphysical view that the only things that exist are ideas and minds (a material external world does not exist)
(liberalism): An approach to international relations that emphasizes international law and international organizations over military force alone Also emphasizes the latent power of everyday citizens and grass-roots organizations Based on the anti-nationalist idea that all human beings, regardless of their political affiliation, can belong to a single community with universal human rights Exemplified in the United Nations Charter
Generally the view that there aren't, or can't be, material objects existing independent of thought E g Berkeley thought that only minds existed There is some disagreement as to whether phenomenalists should be labeled "idealists" Generally "idealism" has now unfavorable connotations so its use as a label is often just an expression of distaste
The artistic theory or practice that affirms the preeminent values of ideas and imagination, as compared with the faithful portrayal of nature in realism (Compare Classicism, Imagism, Impressionism, Metaphysical, Objectivism, Romanticism, Symbolism)