Essay 6-Existence of Objects

Introduction

In essay 4 we have established the absolute existence of reality, that by the proof of conscious experience, reality exists absolutely. This serves as the first truth obtained within the philosophical system and one of the early foundations of the philosophical system after the conscious experience itself. However, the scope of existence is still unclear and whether there are any other objects other than the propositions of essay 4 is also unclear.

We need to have a solid proof of such objects as our final goal of happiness is now a mere hypothesis. It is necessary to prove that hypothesis to ensure that it is even worth pursuing. As dictated previously in essay 4, it is necessary to prove the existence of objects first before we can determine their other properties, otherwise it will be all meaningless. As such it is necessary to prove the existence of objects.

The proving of the existence of objects will also be a form of certainty of the membership of reality. As stated in essay 4, reality is the totality of all existence and as such, of all objects. Therefore, an object is a member or part of reality, and we would like to determine with certainty what objects are there, what are the certain exact members of reality. From that information we can primarily deduce the size of reality. This information will be useful in the accurate language of reality and description of reality along with distinctions between realistic size and universal size.

In essay 5, we have determined the definition of the conscious experience. It is this conscious experience which is used to prove the absolute existence of reality in essay 4. In this essay we will also use the same conscious experience with the complete definition to determine the existence of objects. As such with the background above, the goal of this essay is to obtain a method to determine the accurate existence of objects.

Existence of Objects

Let us first remind ourselves of several key facts which will be the foundations of this essay. In essay 4 we have established the conscious experience as a truth and as a source of proof. In this case we shall treat it as a truth and source of proof which justifies or proves existence. In the same essay we also determined the absolute existence of reality through conscious experience. The method of determining the existence of objects will mirror this.

Still in essay 4, we also have an intuition of existence and a definitive establishment of existence. We say that we have an intuition that there is such a thing as existence and that by definition existence is proven by conscious experience. Then we have the definition of experience as stated in essay 5 which includes the limits, or precisely the lack of limits of the conscious experience.

While most systems would either divide the experience or limit it to only internal or external experience, we do not limit or divide it and accept conscious experience as a united whole. From such foundations we can construct a method of conscious experience to prove the existence of objects. Following the first and second foundation, we follow that since the conscious experience proves the existence of reality, then it should prove the existence of objects individually as well. Then the definitive establishment becomes the basis of why existence is proven by conscious experience. Finally, the definition of experience dictates that any kind of experience, be it internal or external, is sufficient for the proving of the existence of objects.

It is true that it is slightly difficult to articulate this problem in a clearer and more elaborate manner than this for it has been mentioned numerous times in the previous essays. As the intuitive establishment has shown that by any means the presence of experience would prove an existence. What we are engaging in this essay is simply to clarify what is already there, just as essay 4 firmly establishes and clarifies our common experiences of reality.

It is not only difficult to articulate, but also difficult to debate or refute. For the foundation of the existence of objects is the conscious experience itself, which is highly difficult to refute. As with a strong basis, the existence of objects has gained a logical strength as well. The only possible denial of an object’s existence is by denying that there is an experience, and so we would go for a mentally unsound and disturbed path.

There is a problem with the existence of objects which cannot be addressed in this essay as it is not the purpose of this essay. The problem is whether the conscious experience or phenomenon is the same with the object it represents or is instead different. We can compare this problem to the problem of language. A word and the object it means are certainly different, but we know this only because we can consciously experience the two objects in a different manner. Yet in the case of phenomena, we only ever have the phenomenon and not the object behind it. As such this will require further investigation to determine the true relationship.

However, we can treat a phenomenon as its own object. As such we currently do not say that the phenomenon of X informs of a separate object of X, rather it informs us of an object of X. As such it would not be clear whether this X is equal to the phenomenon or independent of the phenomenon. With that we can declare a final statement as a method of proving the existence of objects, “If we consciously experience an object, the object exists.”

Conclusion

With that, the purpose of this essay has been fulfilled and we obtain a single philosophical statement that is, “If we consciously experience an object, the object exists.” In the next essay we shall discuss something which has not been discussed in this essay that is the definition of an object. As such, this essay is declared to be finished.

This essay corresponds to the Indonesian version.