Vicissitudes of Reality

Abstract

‘Real’ and ‘really’ are deflated and minimalized in parallel to the minimalist and de-flationary treatment of truth. J.L. Austin's insightful comment that with ‘real’: ‘The negative wears the trousers’ is elucidated and developed. There follows a discussion of the bearing of the point on Plato's claims about knowledge, belief and ignorance. It is maintained that it is implausible to hope that acquaintance with a Form for various Fs is going to provide complete knowledge of the wardrobe of Austinian trousers, especially inasmuch as that wardrobe grows and changes with the vicissitudes of socio-industrial-commercial-technological life.