Solipsism

Solipsism is the belief that the only thing a person can be absolutely sure of is that he or she exists.  All other persons or objects do not exist independently of one’s mind. The solipsist, therefore, views his mind as the only thing that exists in reality. All other persons and objects are reflections of his consciousness.

According to solipsism you may perceive things on a daily basis such as your house, car, newspaper, kids, and spouse, but these things do not have a real independent existence on their own. They are just conceptions in your mind much like objects on a movie screen appear real but are just reflections of a projector on a screen. Thus, the world that plays out before you is like your own private movie theatre in which your perceptions are the only thing on the screen. In fact, your mind is the projector in a movie theatre in which no one else is present.

Solipsism could be said to have its roots in the ideas of Rene Descartes and his Cogitoergo sum which means “I think therefore I am.” Using his approach of “radical doubt” Descartes argued that there was only one thing he could be absolutely sure of—the mere fact that he thinks means he must exist. Although Descartes was not a solipsist, his view taken to its logical extreme could lead to solipsism.