Question

What is the opposite of someone who believes in ideals?

Answer 1

I would say a fatalist or a defeatist. Idealism implies the possession of ideals and this in turn implies the possibility of aspiring to realize them. By complete contrast, a fatalist relinquishes all control of her life and resigns herself to the vicissitudes of fate, whilst a defeatist simply surrenders all aspiration. Neither could be said to be an idealist: in word or in deed.

Answer 2

If you are speaking about actual philosophical terms, then it is a realist, although there are a few branches of realism. There is representative realism, the view that we cannot directly experience the world, so all we see is actual representations of things, it allows for personal differences in perceptions. The second branch of realism is naive realism, which is basically what you see is what you get, a table is a table, if you watch a film there is no further analysis needed. There is another branch of philosophy to do with perception which is phenomenalism, if you are familiar with idealism it attempts to solve the problems of idealism, whereas instead of completely eradicating the physical world, it says that there is a permanent possibilty of somethings existence once it is experienced.

Answer 3

The "obvious" answer is a "realist," though I'm not sure idealism has an opposite mindset.. . Maybe "idealist" means someone who has hopes that things will work, and "defeatist" is the closest to being its opposite (the loss of hope).

Answer 4

Quaker

Answer 5

I'd say, realist.

Answer 6

Human being! me, you and everybody else!

Answer 7

I would say all the "scientific" concoctions assembled and preached by the good Rev. Trask!!! After all, in popular usage, an idealist is a person who has a strong code of values or a great deal of integrity, though sometimes to an excessive degree (often contrasted with those who are merely or healthily pragmatic). ;-). . But seriously and to answer your question: The opposite of an idealist is a materialist, period.

Answer 8

Realist

Answer 9

Wife !!!

Answer 10

Materialist, existentialist. An idealist believes that things in the world have pre-existing ideal forms. So there are not just trees, but an ideal form Tree. Materialists and existentialists work from the phenomena we actually see in our world.