Many philosophers, such as Isabelle Thomas-Fogiel, claim to have refuted realism. None has succeeded. We must recognise the distinction between truth and knowledge and the distinction between truth and falsity. Philosophical ideas have a way of leaking into the rest of society; we cannot speak truth to power if we have given up on truth argues Timothy Williamson.
The word ‘realism’ is used in very different ways. I will explain one philosophical view which can reasonably be called ‘realist’. It is not exactly the same as the view Isabelle Thomas-Fogiel calls ‘realism’ in her article ‘Is realism the future of philosophy?’, but I think my realism captures the insights in the realism she criticizes. Although many philosophers claim to have refuted this kind of realism, none of them has succeeded. Realism is a sober philosophy; rejecting it brings both the pleasures and the dangers of drunkenness.
Reality comprises everything. Most of reality is independent of us—of you, me, and other thinking creatures. There is a big universe out there; it existed long before any thinking occurred. Of course, we are part of reality too: in that sense, a tiny bit of reality depends on us. But thinking or saying something still does not make it so. People can be infected by Covid-19 however strongly and sincerely they deny it.
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