Reality As Human Creation In Ian Hacking

Ian Hacking’s claim that reality is a human creation seems paradoxical and requires further investigation. A paradox is that statement which can only be true if it is false and false if it is true. It offers a counterintuitive conclusion or outcome, claiming that two apparently contradictory ideas are true. Often, paradoxes are intractable in the sense that their questions seem unanswerable and difficult, yet leading to some deeper truth. The relevance of philosophy in our science-intoxicated world hinges on its ability to investigate paradoxical situations in life. An investigation into the Hackinian position on reality seems to represent no boundary thesis between idealism and realism. Hence, this paper argues that reality may not be as Hacking, who was predominantly trained in the analytic tradition, has posited. The paper advances strong arguments to conclude that Hacking’s position concerning the human creation of reality is a paradox.