Naturalism and Idealism

Paper Summary:

This paper explains that idealism claims that the world is beautiful, everybody is good and a person can adopt high goals and adhere to them though ideas rather than material forces; on the other hand, naturalism is the view that nature alone is real. The author points out that nature has its share in the life of the soul and, in its numerous manifestations, deeply influences human life; but this natural life of the soul is peripheral, merely an appendix to the material phenomena of nature. The paper contends that modern science has not been the result of a gradual accumulation of sensual perceptions but rather a deliberate break with the entire stock of traditional knowledge.

From the Paper:

"Technological progress becomes even more exciting when it enters into the service of the social idea, which demands not only a small elite but also humanity at large should profit by it. This demand creates an entirely new challenge, requiring tremendous energy but also giving rise to new complications and harsh contrasts which, in turn, intensify the passion of man's work in this world and enrich its meaning. The transformation of environment has become the purpose of human life; life seems real only insofar as it deals with things. Man no longer needs to escape to an invisible world in order to find and realize exalted goals."

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