Solipsism

This wonderful word was brought to my attention by a poster on www.43things.com ( Gary ). He posts a lot of interesting things on science and language, among other things.

For some unexplained reason, this word struck my fancy and I, as usual, went off on a writing spree.

According to Solipsism on Wikipedia, "Solipsism is the philosophical idea that "I am the only mind that exists" ... that knowledge of anything outside the mind is unjustified. The external world and other minds cannot be known and may not exist."

From observing my children and others, I found that toddlers seem to believe the world around them sprang into existence when they became conscious, but as they grow older and reach the wonderful age of about three, their minds open to the fact that there is more out there.

That’s usually when fear enters a child’s life.

I have met some people that seem to keep that "innocence"; that live without thought of others and without fear. Yet they are outraged when anything happens that isn’t of their doing because in their "world-view" nothing can happen unless they make it happen. They appear incapable of looking ahead at all the possible outcomes because they limit "the world" to what exists inside their minds and in their experience.

Is it better or worse to be a solipsist?

A solipsist
exists
in a world of their making.

No worries have they
to plans gone astray.

But let the outside intrude
as it inevitably would

and the solipsist
insists
on the blame, abnegating.
(c) Maria Aleman 2007

I think that Jung’s collective unconscious is a variation on this. In this case, all the minds that agree on a particular “world-view” are creating it. In a way, they/we are, if you consider the “spread of culture” through the exchange of art, writings, music, philosophy, etc.

There is also the “create your day” idea of “What the Bleep do we know?” and the "The Secret”.

So are we all walking around within a bubble of personal reality? So that when two bubbles intersect, they either meld or they don’t? Does our acceptance or rejection of another person have something to do with this on a quantum physics level?

By observing a particle, do we really change it’s behavior?

I find this subject very interesting because I have often wondered what makes people act the way they do. I’m sure we’ve all heard someone say “How could they do that? They must be living in their own world!”

I wonder if maybe they are living in their own world and, if so, how does one get there? And is it unethical to just pop-on on them?

Solipsism takes “I think, therefore I am” to the next level, “I think, therefore you are!”