Reality.

INTRODUCTION - THE PUZZLES. Philosophers have always tried to find out what's real and true by discovering and stripping away what's mistaken and apparent. They've asked fundamental questions about reality, and have uncovered ambiguities and contradictions which have given rise to long-standing disagreements. Different philosophers have had different worries about reality. This essay is about what's puzzled me personally, and how I've organised my ideas about it so far. Our knowledge of the physical world …

…are entirely concerned with the reliable appearances which constitute our experience. So the customary meaning of the word "real" is still satisfactory, and indeed necessary, for dealing with everyday life. But in rigorous discussion the notion of things which exist or occur becomes a purely abstract idea, so in such discussions we have to give up the major element of the customary meaning of the word "real" - its associations with familiar objects and experiences.