What a fascinating discussion we had in class about Realism and Idealism! Most likely, not many people have thought very much about whether they are Idealists or Realists, and it’s not something they necessarily have to figure out. However, it can be an eye-opening, self-revealing exercise, and it never hurts to have a deeper level of understanding about one’s self. This is the kind of thing that can seem to have some overlap, and we might feel differently about it during different phases of our lives. The gist that I got from our lecture was that Idealists are deeply moved to the soul by things like art and music, and are spiritual or religious by nature. They feel there is an ideal form of everything, a perfect form, and we humans are nowhere close to it – we’re just a “dim copy” of it. A well-lived life means striving to become as close to the ideal as possible. Realists, on the other hand, take the world as it is, without believing there is something better to model it on. Realists tend to be skeptical and non-religious. All of this really set me to thinking about the deeper meaning. I am not a terribly religious person – or am I? I don’t know anymore. I’ve always struggled with a feeling that religion was for those who needed some kind of explanation for understanding the world, the universe, and our place in it, and so they created mythologies, which formed religions. I grew up in the Episcopal church, and it’s hard to not feel influenced by that. But I’ve never felt that close to the church. On the other hand, I am tremendously and deeply moved by so many things. When I was eight years old, I told my mother that Beethoven’s 9th Symphony “hurt my heart.” I’ve always loved music, but I can’t always listen to it because the emotions it sometimes evokes are too overwhelming. As with music, there are certain artworks that move me to tears because I feel lifted up to some kind of higher level – I guess this is the “glimpsing of the divine” that Professor O’Malley talked about in his lecture. It fills me right through my soul with the most uplifting feeling I’ve ever known. I always thought I was just overly-sensitive and overly-emotional. But – and this is something I NEVER would have thought of myself – I am coming to the conclusion that I am an Idealist. I’m not sure what this will mean in my life – but it feels good to have another little piece of knowledge about myself. And here I’m going to sound like an Idealist – it would probably benefit many people to think about this. Isn’t it important to try to understand ourselves and those around us to be able to live in this world together and make it a better place? Oh, yup – there’s that Idealist penchant for striving for things to be better. But that can’t be all there is to it, because part of me is cynical and skeptical. Is this just a learned defense mechanism against all of the stuff that seems to be out of control, like politics and terrorism and senseless wars? I believe in a strong military and defense system because I believe we have to be prepared for whatever the madness of the world throws at us. And I truly believe the world will never be rid of warped humans like terrorists and dictators, and we have to be able to cope with eventual fallout from situations they create. But I wish the human race could see how senseless all this is. One of the reasons I liked the TV show Star Trek: Next Generation was because humans had evolved to a level where they were beyond their petty differences and worked together (for the most part). There was one absolutely fascinating episode that probably speaks to my ideals more than most things – one of the characters was a Messianic type of person (in the best way – kind, wise, charismatic, spreading hope) who was undergoing some kind of physical changes. It turned out that he was one of the first humans undergoing a metamorphasis into a higher level of existence, a path that humans could aspire to take. Thinking beyond that episode, I wonder how many humans could manage to achieve that metamorphasis? Is it strange to feel mixed up about idealism and realism and wonder whether aspects of both can exist in one person? My skepticism about humans in general is mixed in with that belief that we can do so much better. Wouldn’t it be heavenly (to borrow another Idealistic concept) to become a whole new kind of being that is beyond human pettiness and ignorance? An Idealist can always hope…