The Philosophy of As If

The "philosophy of as if" was developed by Hans Vaihinger in his work The Philosophy of "As If". Vaihinger proposed that humans willingly accept falsehoods or fictions to navigate an irrational world. He believed that since true knowledge is limited to phenomena, as suggested by Immanuel Kant, people must use their will to create fictional explanations. These fictions are accepted not because they are true, but because they provide nonrational solutions to problems that lack rational answers. For example, one might act "as if" a material world exists independently of perception, or "as if" ethical certainty is possible. Vaihinger's philosophy is seen as a precursor to pragmatism.12