The Philosophy Of Existence: How Do You See The World?

I personally do not prefer the use of labels to identify people and the depth of their being, but in some instances it can be very helpful to determine the type of person you are by what you choose to define yourself as. This can either be beneficial or detrimental to interacting with others, which is why it is common for people to avoid the topics of religion and politics in general conversation. But every once in a while, I would contemplate the art of perception, or how the things around me exist. The conclusions can be overwhelming, but that's normally what happens when you let go of complacent mentalities of any form.

A couple of years ago, I had the epiphany that there's a chance that everything only exists to me a certain way, but can be something entirely different to the next person. And in some ways, this is already true. But I'm referring to physical existence and not belief. For example, there can be two people sitting at a table with a plate on it. For one of the people, it can just be a red plate on a white table with an adult person sitting across from them in a restaurant. But there's a good chance that the other person could be experiencing a similar, yet mostly different reality. They could be in a cafeteria of a hospital in wheelchairs, or two children at a bench in a park. The plate could be blue to them, or they could even just not be human. They could be birds with a flat stone in front of them. Or they could be alien life forms in a symmetrical galaxy. There's no way to know for sure how the world actually seems to them because it will only  translate into what you're experiencing, and vice versa.

I kind of columbused this idea because I thought I was the only person to think something like this. But I know for sure that I wasn't the only person to believe that the world only exists in that person's mind. 

The Tracy Fragments. Good Movie.

Especially when I found this video, pretty much questioning everything that "exists."

It's a lot to take in,  but I think it is pretty amazing that people can think this way and how much controversy it can spark. I personally find nothing wrong with being a solipsistic, but then again, it is pretty difficult to tell it apart from egocentrism (or the egocentric predicament). Then I realized that some people may consider these things to be the same as being a narcissist. But all  of these things can be seen as realism in a way. You know what? It's rather upsetting to have all these ways to identify someone who sees things in different ways, so I'm gonna help make sense of them. This is why I put the first few terms in the order I did. I feel that the level of awareness in determined as greater than or lesser than.

Everyone is at least slightly focused on who they are, who they want to be, and how people see them. However in today's society, it is known to diagnose a person as a narcissist for being significantly involved with themselves more than anything or anyone else. Narcissism involves being self-centered, manipulative, and basically  full of yourself. It is full on egotistic admiration to the point of apathy of the world (that doesn't revolve) around you. So that's like if I tried to explain my theory from earlier to someone, and they were like, "That doesn't even make sense." and I refuse to take in their opinion because I know I'm right because I'm so awesome.

Then there's the idea that before I even bring up my theory to the people I'm talking to, I assume that the conversation is not going to go well due to preconceived notions on how they handle that type of conversation, or basically anything that I say. Something lie playing out the whole scenario in my mind, thinking that I know exactly how it's gonna play out or what they think. This is a form of egocentrism. It is one step above narcissism since the opinions and worlds of others do actually make somewhat of a difference to you, but only with how you see it. Being egocentric is the same thing that makes paranoia in public places, where you think that a person looking at you is scrutinizing your composition entirely. You looking back at them, ironically enough, may lead them to believe you are doing the exact same thing.

Now, there's also the scenario that I decide not to bring up my theory to anyone at all... because it's a waste of time... because everything is in my mind. This is the idea of solipsism. I believe it is the equivalent of both narcissism and egocentrism put together. Like you know that everything is mainly about you and the world is in your head. The difference is that a solipsist doesn't believe anything exists out of their knowledge and perception. Something like believing that the person create everything you know.

Another way to look at it is in the tone of death. If a narcissist dies, it's like, "that's too bad. Now no one can praise on my awesomeness anymore." An egocentric, "it was all made up  anyway, because my subconscious created this ending for me. I'll probably come back as a cat or something, or just try out being human again." (this is if they believe in reincarnation). A solipsist, "It's all over. And since I'm gone, everything is gone."

In a way, all of these philosophies/psychologies oppose the concept of realism. While the first few have to do with your point of view making a difference in your life, realist imply that no differences can be made due  to the "real world" that was created and is more accurate of a resource of truth than the person. A realist would use time, science, mathematics, and logic to prove that an object is definite. Some people would relate a realist to a pessimist or pragmatic. In fact, a pragmatist believes that nothing exists outside of what is experienced, and that one cannot learn or develop without taking action. 

But there are some philosophies that would believe that beings have more of a say in existence than just what already was, what is, and what will be. For instance, an idealist believes that ideas a person make are the only things that are real. This would instill the need to build yourself up mentally in order for you to achieve what you want in life. An  existentialist believes that a person is able to be who ever and do whatever they want. Existentialism puts the individual in charge of what everything means to them.

[Info on realism, idealism, pragmatism, and existentialism]: http://oregonstate.edu/instruct/ed416/PP2.html

So there's an underlying correlation between all these terms: each of which holds the individual responsible for their response to the evidence of truth. If you were to ask all these people, "why?" you'd get...

*Narcissist- Because that's how I see it, and what you think doesn't matter since I'm too smart and fantastic  to get anything wrong.

*Egocentrist- Because that's how I see it, and what you think  doesn't matter since life made me see this way.

*Solipsist- Because that's how I see it, and what you think doesn't matter because you don't even exist.

*Realist- Because that's how I see it, and I have evidence from he world of information to prove it.

*Pragmatist- Because that's how I see it, and you can go test it for yourself for accuracy.

*Idealist- Because that's how I see it, and it will be the only way I will ever see anything since I was inspired toward such ideals.

*Existentialist- Because that's how I see it, and that's what makes me most satisfied with life and why it exists.

Which of these best identifies you? What other philosophies are there? Also, I may have gotten some points wrong, so if you have any feedback on my summaries of perspective, please comment. I'm not a narc, so all opinions will be acknowledged. :-p