Reality does not conform to the ideal, but confirms it | UPSC Mains Essay Preparation PDF Download

Introduction

To begin with, let us first understand the difference between ideal and real. In their meanings and connotations, they are different states. The most obvious difference between them is the difference between ‘what is’ and ‘what ought to be’. There are different senses in which these two words are used as an opposite pair. For instance, the ideal is the standard against which the real can be measured. The ideal is the highest value, while real attempts to measure up to it.

Real and Ideal

Both “real” and “ideal” are used to denote various situations. They are used in a whole range of contexts such as one’s life and behaviour, culture, and every other concept, entity, or idea. In philosophy, the meaning of ‘real’ is the objective world perceived through senses. It is the external, independent world that is pervasive and objective. Some philosophers have sought to equate ‘real’ to the ‘Absolute’ or the supreme entity. On the other hand, the ‘ideal’ is the subjective world derived from ideas. It is the mental world and not within the grasp of sense perception. The debate in philosophy has been between the realists and the idealists.
The words, as used in the topic of this essay, bring forth the debate between the ideal and the real. According to the topic, reality confirms the ideal but does not conform to it. This implies that:

• Ideal does not precede real, but real becomes prior or at least parallel to ideal.
• The ideal is not the standard or the .benchmark
• The ideal is based on real and not the other way round.

From the above, it can be inferred that there is no ideal situation on which the real is based. On the contrary, it is the picture of reality that gives us the notion of ideal or an understanding of the idea. In other words, reality does not conform to the ideal but confirms it. Based on this understanding of the real, it can be claimed that the material world of concrete reality is the absolute or the ultimate. This understanding of the real may lead us to believe that the notion of God as an Absolute is not something different from the real but something that is immanent in the concrete reality.
Here, the concept of reality is similar to the Marxian understanding of reality. According to Marx, real comes prior to ideal. When Marx made this statement, he debunked the historical notion that reality is based on an idea. Applying it in the realm of culture, Marx upheld that what happens in everyday life is culture or the real culture. And this material reality of the world gives rise to the ideal, i.e., the perfect level or form one can imagine or have an idea of and also strive to attain. In other words, real (coming before the ideal) does not conform to the ideal but confirms that it is attainable.
According to this understanding, all the ideas and concepts, and knowledge are the products of the material circumstances. The material circumstances relate to the relationship between man and man on one hand and the relationship between man and the method of production on the other.

Why Ideal is Unsustainable

It is said that we dream of something perfect and then attempt to fulfil this dream. In this case, the dream is ideal and what we achieve in reality based on this dream is the real. Thus, it is claimed that real conforms to the ideal.
The above claim is fallacious. Here’s how. When we dream of something, the content of this dream is borrowed from the real. For instance, when we conceptualize the notion of an ideal world, we see in this world prosperity, justice, love, material and spiritual well-being, and so on and so forth. However, on careful examination, we realise that every element in this world has been borrowed from the real world, except that these elements have been exaggerated and magnified. We cannot think of an idea that is not derived from reality.
Coming back to Marx, who claimed that religion is the opiate of the masses, let us understand how religions came into existence. Some of us may claim that religions, which are based on the notion of God, or the absolute perfect form of man, came prior to mankind. However, studies show that the material condition of human beings, which has always been a function of its multiple fears and worries, gave rise to religion. These fears are about survival, disease, death, old age, etc. To overcome these fears and worries, which are the results of the uncertainties of life, religions were established. Here, the reality is that man is fearful and has many worries. The ideal condition, on the other hand, as offered through religion, would be that man is immortal like God and therefore should not have any fear. So, it is clear that the ideal did not exist prior to mankind but is a result of the circumstances that man lived in. The idea of God and religion came about only to give solace to mankind. Thus, the reality does not conform to the ideal but confirms it.
The ideal in itself is unsustainable because there is no ‘idea’ that is independent of the real. For instance, let us examine the idea of Golden Mountain. One may claim that it is an entirely imaginary idea that is not based on reality. However, the truth is that this idea is derived from reality. We have the ideas of gold and mountain. These ideas are derived from real gold and real mountain. When we combine them, we get the idea of Golden Mountain. There can be innumerable ideas that may be considered purely fictitious, but the ideal world is unsustainable in itself because real, or the reality comes somewhere prior to it.

Conclusion

To conclude, we can claim that reality does not conform to the ideal but confirms it. There are different perceptions of the word ‘ideal’, and one of them is ‘perfection’ or ‘absolute’. When we claim that we want to make our society or our state an ideal state, it doesn’t mean that there exists a real perfect world to which the world we are trying to make will conform. On the contrary, it means we want to improve the present state to the maximum extent possible. In other words, the possibility that such a world can be made confirms the ideal.