Scottish Metaphysics

Scottish metaphysics is a philosophical tradition emphasizing reason, common sense, and the nature of reality, developed largely in the 17th and 18th centuries by thinkers like Thomas Reid. It explores how we perceive and understand the world, asserting that our senses and innate faculties provide us with trustworthy knowledge. Unlike some metaphysical approaches that rely on abstract reasoning or skepticism, Scottish metaphysics focuses on human experience and the innate principles that enable us to grasp reality directly. It highlights the importance of practical reasoning and rejects the idea that knowledge must be entirely derived from complex, abstract theories.