What is the nature of reality?
William James begins his lecture series on pragmatism by quoting G. K. Chesterton (from Heretics): "There are some people—and I am one of them—who think that the most practical and important thing about a man is still his view of the universe. We think that for a landlady considering a lodger it is important to know his income, but still more important to know his philosophy. We think that for a general about to fight an enemy it is important to know the enemy's numbers, but still more important to know the enemy's philosophy. We think the question is not whether the theory of the cosmos affects matters, but whether in the long run anything else affects them." James agrees with Chesterton. (Pragmatists like James believe that ideas matter—specifically, they believe that ideas are rules for action, and since actions have consequences and consequences matter, ideas matter.)
Each of us carries around a complex web of beliefs regarding the nature of reality, most of which we simply inherited from our parents or cultures. These beliefs orient us toward the world in ways so fundamental that we rarely take notice. To operate at such a foundational level, we have to take for granted our view of reality. Yet we can begin to wonder the ways in which we don't have the full story. Once we begin wondering, we'll quickly see that reality is much stranger than we had previously assumed. We'll see that our own understanding of reality is mostly a helpful but abbreviated story we're required to accept for practical purposes.
Looking closer into this question regarding the nature of reality can be disorienting, but if we can manage to look little by little, it can enrich our lives. In one sense, we can think of reality as that which makes it possible that any experiences occur in the first place, and as we explore and better understand how it might be that existence/experience itself is possible, we'll open up richer possibilites for our own existence/experience.
