Naturalism
"Naturalism" refers to a number of different topics:
- Philosophical naturalism: the view that nothing exists but the world — that there are no supernatural entities.
- Ethical naturalism: the theory that ethical terms can be defined in non-ethical terms.
- Natural history: a broad area of the natural sciences concerned with living things.
- Methodological naturalism: the philosophical tenet that, within scientific enquiry, one can only use natural explanations; that is, one's explanations must not make reference to the existence of supernatural forces and entities.
- Sociological naturalism: the view that natural world and social world are roughly identical and governed by similar principles.
- Naturalism as a literary style.
- Naturalism as a theatrical movement.
See also Naturalist.
Naturalism should not be confused with naturism, i.e., nudism.