In philosophy the term realism is used in a

context of controversy in which the reality of objects

of some category has been denied in some way,

usually by claiming that the objects in question are

creations or constructions of the human mind. The

realist in the controversy is one who defends the

status of the controversial objects. A philosopher

can be a realist about one issue, while denying realism

with respect to some other. The two most common

contexts in which the term is used are

universals and the objects of sense perception. A realist

about universals holds that they are real, in the

sense of not being mere names or concepts. A realist

about the objects of sense perception holds that

they are real, in the sense of enjoying an existence

independent of the perceiving mind.

Naive realism is the view that the objects of

perception not only exist, but exist just as they

seem to be. This position is often taken to be refuted

by the various forms of the argument from

illusion. See illusion, argument from; representative

ideas, theory of.