The Philosophical Journey of Materialism

Understanding Materialism

Materialism refers to a set of theories that, throughout the history of thought, have argued for a fundamental principle: "there is only matter" or that "everything is reducible to matter." Since the concept of matter has varied over time and has not always been clearly defined, various kinds of philosophical materialism have emerged.

Materialism in Ancient Greek Philosophy

In ancient Greek philosophy, different manifestations of this philosophical trend are evident. Classical ancient atomism, embodied by Leucippus and Democritus, posited that there are only atoms and void. All of nature and the changes that take place can be explained by random shocks occurring between these indivisible, smallest units of matter, which are endowed with eternal motion. This statement of the eternal motion of matter became the paradigm for all subsequent materialism.

Epicureanism and Stoicism continued atomistic materialism. The Epicurean world, made of atoms, was not fully subject to physical determinism. The Stoics, by saying that "everything is a body," implied that everything exists materially, with the exception of four 'incorporeal' entities: void, place, and time.

Materialism in Modern Philosophy

In the 17th century, during the height of modern philosophy, Thomas Hobbes reiterated the basic claim of ancient atomism: everything in the universe consists of bodies in motion, and what is not a body is not part of the universe. Hobbes, a founder of modern metaphysical empiricism, also applied the principles of materialism to psychological explanations, problems of language, and social relations.

The scope of the materialistic attitude achieved its greatest extent with the French Enlightenment of the 18th century, championed by figures like Voltaire and Diderot.

Scientific Advancements and Materialism

Nineteenth-century scientific discoveries not only reaffirmed the convictions of materialists and naturalists from the French Enlightenment but also provided a scientific basis for their views. Subsequent developments and scientific advances of the late 19th and 20th centuries led to the universally accepted conclusion that life, humanity, and society itself are evolutionary products of nature. Therefore, the material perspective became identified with a proper scientific attitude.

This widespread acceptance of materialism in the 20th century led to a focus on issues like the mind-body relationship. A pivotal development was the thought of Karl Marx (1818-1883), who, at the turn of the century, initiated dialectical materialism and historical materialism.