The 4 differences between idealism and materialism

Beginning in the time of Classical Greece, philosophers have been maintaining a historical debate about what is more important: the idea or the matter. Does the idea exist independent of matter? Does matter create the idea? Does matter depend on a thinking mind to exist?

Idealism and materialism are two long-standing philosophical currents that have not yet reached an agreement about who is right, they have simply been evolving to other hybrid or critical currents with the postulates originals. here we will see the main differences between materialism and idealism.

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Distinguishing Between Idealism and Materialism

Idealism and materialism are two extremely important currents in the history of philosophy, so much so that they have divided it. Idealism defends that the idea (metaphysics) is more important and prevails over matter, while the Materialism, on the other hand, maintains that the beginning of everything is matter (science), being more important than the idea. To understand what their main differences are, let's first delve into what idealists and materialists believe.

What is idealism?

Idealism can be understood as "the doctrine of ideas". The emergence of this current can be placed in the times of Classical Greece. It is considered to Plato (427-347 BC) C.) as the first philosopher who started idealism with his theory of ideas, a current that would evolve throughout throughout the history of philosophy in other branches, such as subjective idealism, objective idealism and idealism transcendental.

Idealism is defined as the philosophical current that affirms that ideas are more important than the rest of the things, that reality is nothing more than a construct of the mind and that the world exists if there is a mind that can think about it Ideas, concepts, words and numbers have independent existence according to the followers of this current.

Some of the most important idealist philosophers are René Descartes (1596-1650), Wilhelm Leibniz (1646-1716), George Berkeley (1685-1753), Immanuel Kant (1729-1804) or Friedrich Hegel (1770-1931).

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What is materialism?

Materialism can be understood as the doctrine of matter. As with idealism, materialism arose in Ancient Greece, with philosophers such as Thales of Miletus (624-547 BC) following this current. C.), Anaximander (610-546 a. C.) or Democritus (460-370 a. C). One cannot speak of materialism without mentioning Aristotle (384-322 BC). C). with his theory of the dual universe, according to which everything is made up of matter, essence and substance.

Materialism is the philosophical current that defends that matter is the origin of everything, that all things and reality exist in themselves because they are matter. Whether in the form of the four classical elements (earth, water, air, and fire) or atoms, matter is the only reality in the world. Matter exists without needing to be created or perceived. Some materialists deny the existence of God and the soul, diametrically opposed to spiritualism and, naturally, to idealism. Materialists deny free will and believe in determinism.

Over the centuries, materialism branched out, emerging historical materialism and dialectical materialism, among others. Throughout history there have been many materialist authors, including Giordano Bruno (1548-1600), Galileo Galilei (1564-1642), Thomas Hobbes (1580-1679), Paul-Henri d'Holbach (1723-1789) Friedrich Engels (1818-1883) or Karl Marx (1820-1895).

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The main differences between these two streams

Idealism and materialism are two antagonistic currents, directly opposed in the world of philosophy. Their main differences are the following.

1. idea vs. matter

Idealism defends that the idea prevails over the rest of things and that it is the principle of being and knowledge. Idealists believe that things exist because we think about them, being in fact collections of ideas. Thus, in idealism, objects and other things are seen as elements that cannot exist without a mind that thinks about them and is aware of it. Thinking minds are needed to develop ideas of things. The matter is seen as something secondary and dependent on the idea.

Materialism advocates just the opposite. For materialists, matter is the beginning of everything. The objects and other elements of the universe are composed of matter and exist without the need to be perceived by a thinking mind. If there is no matter, there is no existence. The idea about something is actually created from matter, so the idea depends on matter, not the other way around.

Materialism tells us about two types of realities: subjective and objective. The subjective is the reality that resides in our thought, while the objective is the real world, the matter that surrounds us. Subjective reality is subject to objective reality, so existence lies in what is perceptible or knowable.

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2. Intangibility vs. tangibility

Idealism defends the intangibility of things. That is to say, it defends the existence of things that cannot be touched, seen or felt, such as ideas, the spirit or consciousness.

Instead, materialism defends the tangibility of things, everything that can be seen, touched or objectively recorded as the really real.

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3. religion and science

In matters of religion and science, idealism and materialism also disagree profoundly. For idealism, ideas or spirit create reality, believing that the origin of everything lies in a being or intangible entity. It is for this reason that religion and idealism get along so well because, after all, the idea of ​​God or of divinities of the style refers to an intangible entity that lives in a metaphysical world from where it would be created reality.

Instead, materialism rejects the idea of ​​the metaphysical world, which means that it does not agree with the religions that defend the existence of an immaterial entity. Materialists rely on scientific and rational thought, focusing on studying what has matter and can be proven or known tangibly and empirically.

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4. origin of thought

As the last main difference between idealism and materialism, we comment on how both currents conceive the creation of thought.

According to idealists, the idea is the basis of all knowledge., which leads us to understand reality and generate thoughts from it. Human beings have a spirit or thinking mind capable of making us decide or think about the world around us.

Contrary, materialism affirms that people think because we have a material organ, the brain, capable of generating ideas and thoughts.