A rationalist is a person who accepts the supremacy of reason, and aims at establishing a system of philosophy and ethics independent of arbitrary assumptions and authority.
What is rationalism?
Rationalism is a movement that exists to promote the role of reason in approaching and finding solutions to the wide range of issues and problems that confront us.
Rationalism argues for a rational approach to human problem-solving, suggests reasoned alternatives to religious dogmas, defends freedom of thought and civil liberties and strives for the secularisation of politics, the education system and society in general. Its members endorse a scientific approach and work to counter superstition and promote an open and just society.
Does this mean rationalists ignore their feelings and emotions?
Not at all. That would be irrational!
What do rationalists believe?
Rationalists believe that one’s beliefs and conduct should be based on a combination of experience and reason. It is to a large degree a development of the ideas and values of the eighteenth century ‘Enlightenment’. Our basic beliefs have been conveniently summarised by the American philosopher, John Searle (Mind, Language and Society: Philosophy in the Real World, Phoenix, 1999, pg 10):
- There is a real world that exists independently of us, independently of our experiences, our thoughts, our language.
- We have direct perceptual access to that world through our senses, especially touch and vision.
- Words in our language, words like rabbit or tree, typically have reasonably clear meanings. Because of their meanings, they can be used to refer to and talk about real objects in the world.
- Our statements are typically true or false depending on whether they correspond to how things are, that is, to the facts in the world.
- Causation is a real relation among objects and events in the world, a relation whereby one phenomenon, the cause, causes another, the effect.
In addition to John Searle’s points above, rationalists also believe that:
- Reason is man’s central capacity, and it enables him not only to think, but to act, correctly.
- An open, egalitarian and secular democracy that respects minority rights and interests and champions fairness, justice and equality maximises the probability of achieving a free and rational society.
- A universal, free and secular education system is a basic requirement for a free, democratic and rational society.
- Free access to information and means of communication is a basic requirement for a free, democratic and rational society.
- Beliefs are to be accepted only on the basis of reason and evidence, not on the authority of priests, sacred texts, or tradition.
- Allegedly supernatural phenomena can be explained in naturalistic terms.
Do rationalists think they are smarter than everyone else?
Rationalists are people who have thought hard and rigorously about life and its meaning. This does not necessarily mean they are smarter than other people, but perhaps they are more thoughtful and aware than those who accept uncritically what they are told.
Are rationalists also ‘economic rationalists’?
No! Rationalism in our sense must be distinguished from ‘economic rationalism’, which many of us would see as not rational at all. Economic rationalism is a term applied originally by Michael Pusey of the Australian National University to characterise economic policies that focussed purely on monetary worth as a measure of value, without taking into account social and moral considerations, such as issues of fairness, justice or equality. In other words, it is ‘the view that commercial activity...represents a sphere of activity in which moral considerations, beyond the rule of business probity dictated by enlightened self-interest, have no role to play’ (Quiggin, John 'Economic rationalism', Crossings, 2(1), 1997, pg 3-12). Most rationalists in our sense would believe that issues of fairness, justice or equality should be taken into account in designing economic policies.