Subjectivism facts for kids

Subjectivism is a way of thinking that puts your own experiences and feelings first. It suggests that what you think and feel is the most real thing you can know. It also means that there might not be one single, "true" reality that everyone agrees on. Instead, reality could be different for each person.

One early thinker who talked about these ideas was Thomas Hobbes. But the philosopher Descartes really made these ideas famous. He used a method called methodic doubt to question everything he thought he knew. This helped him explore the idea that our own thoughts are the most certain thing we have.

What is Metaphysical Subjectivism?

Metaphysical subjectivism is a big idea in philosophy. It says that what we believe to be real is real. It suggests there isn't a hidden, true reality that exists completely on its own, separate from what we see or think.

Think of it this way: if you believe a certain color is beautiful, then for you, it is beautiful. This idea is different from objectivism, which says there's one true reality that exists for everyone, no matter what they think.

This doesn't mean that nothing is real or that everything is just an illusion. Instead, metaphysical subjectivists believe that reality is very real, but its nature depends on the person experiencing it. For example, a video game character might be real within the game's world, but not real in our physical world.

Subjective Facts

Sometimes, subjectivism can mean that there are "subjective facts." For instance, you might say it's a fact that chocolate tastes good. But you also know that not everyone agrees! This means that some facts might be true for one person but not for another.

This idea helps explain how something can be real for you, even if it's not real for someone else. It's like saying it's a fact that it's winter in the Northern Hemisphere, even though it's summer in the Southern Hemisphere at the same time.

What is Ethical Subjectivism?

Ethical subjectivism is about what we think is right or wrong. It's the idea that our moral beliefs come from our own feelings, attitudes, or what we've learned. It suggests that there isn't one universal set of rules for what is good or bad.

For example, imagine a cat. For a cat, hunting and eating mice is perfectly natural and okay. But if you imagine being a mouse, being hunted by a cat would be very scary and wrong! This shows how different individuals can have their own ideas about what is right and wrong.

An ethical subjectivist might say that something is "morally right" simply because a person approves of it. This means that different people might have different ideas about what is right, and all of them could be true for that person.

Subjectivism in Probability

In the world of probability (which is about how likely something is to happen), subjectivism has a special meaning. It's the idea that probabilities are just how much a person believes something is true. They don't have to be a fixed, objective reality.

So, if you say there's a 50% chance of rain, a subjectivist would say that's just how strongly you believe it will rain. Another person might say there's only a 20% chance, and both of you could be "correct" from a subjectivist point of view. This is because probability, in this view, measures a "personal belief."

A mathematician named Bruno de Finetti explored this idea. He said that if you state how much you believe something, it's like making a bet. And your belief (or "bet") should be "coherent." This means you shouldn't set up your beliefs in a way that someone else could easily win money from you, no matter what happens.

See also

• Egocentric predicament
• Existentialism
• Phenomenology