I love diving into different philosophical systems. I enjoy the geometric neatness of Plato’s Forms, the systematic organization of Aristotle’s goal-directed behavior (teleology), and the lively debates about consciousness, from Daniel Dennett’s functionalism to the mysteries of panpsychism.
But I have to admit: Process Philosophy is the hardest system for me to truly get my mind around.
It requires flipping your understanding of reality upside down. It challenges the bedrock assumption that most of philosophy—and our everyday intuition—is built upon. It argues that the universe is made not of static, fixed things, but of dynamic, momentary events and processes.
Welcome to Process Philosophy, the philosophy of becoming. To understand reality, we must shift our focus from the noun to the verb.
The Core Conflict: Substance vs. Process
For thousands of years, the dominant idea in philosophy has been that the most real things are those that are fixed, enduring, and permanent. This is the bedrock of Substance Philosophy. Under this view, an entity (a person, a rock, a planet) has an underlying, unchanging substance or essence, and its changes (moving, aging, growing) are merely secondary or accidental.
Process Philosophy stands in radical opposition. It asserts that change, flux, and activity are the primary, fundamental features of existence. Reality is fundamentally a current, not a container.
This system was not created in a vacuum. The most comprehensive and influential systemization of this idea comes from the 20th-century British mathematician and philosopher, Alfred North Whitehead. He developed Process Philosophy as a direct response to revolutionary advances in contemporary science—specifically Relativity and the emergence of Quantum Mechanics. Whitehead recognized that the traditional philosophical view of reality as solid, inert substances could no longer account for a universe that science described as dynamic, relativistic, and ultimately composed of packets of energy and events. He deliberately sought to create a metaphysics that was harmonious with the scientific knowledge of his day.
A far better analogy for existence isn’t a statue (a fixed, enduring form), but a river —a unified entity whose identity is maintained only through the constant, moment-by-moment flow of entirely new water.
The Unit of Reality: Actual Occasions and Societies
If reality isn’t made of fixed substances, what is it made of? Whitehead argued that the basic unit of existence is the Actual Occasion, or Actual Entity.
An Actual Occasion is a momentary, intense, unified burst of experience or feeling that is an act of self-creation. It has a defined period of existence, achieves its specific purpose or “satisfaction,” and then immediately perishes, giving way to the next occasion.
Think of your own consciousness: it’s not a single, continuous thing, but a rapid, integrated succession of events—a moment of perception, followed by a moment of decision, followed by a moment of feeling. Your mind’s reality is a constant flow of these vanishing occasions.
Societies: How Enduring Objects Emerge
If reality is just a flow of perishing moments, how do stable, enduring objects—like a rock, a planet, or a human being—exist for billions of years?
Whitehead answers this question with the concept of a Society. A Society is a historical sequence or structure of Actual Occasions that are linked together because they all inherit a common defining characteristic or “form of definiteness” from the occasions that preceded them.
In this view, even the most stable objects are not inert substances; they are enduring patterns of events. Reality, therefore, is a vast, hierarchical collection of Societies, all built from the fundamental flow of momentary Actual Occasions. This concept is Whitehead’s ultimate bridge between the flux of quantum physics and the stability we perceive in the macroscopic world.
Beyond Subject and Object
This event-based worldview dissolves the rigid split between the Subject (the isolated observer) and the Object (the external thing being observed).
Every Actual Occasion is radically relational, meaning its very nature is defined by what it takes into itself from the rest of the universe. This act of integration is called Prehension.
- An occasion prehends (or “grasps”) data, influences, and feelings from the entire set of past events in its environment.
- The Subject (the moment of experience) is not separate from the Object (the reality it integrates); it is the way the objectified past comes together in a new, unique creation.
The Big Names of Process Thought 🏛️
While the ideas have ancient roots, the systematic framework of Process Philosophy is largely a 20th-century phenomenon driven by key figures:
- Alfred North Whitehead (The Systematizer): Whitehead is the undisputed founder and system-builder. He created the formal metaphysics and unique vocabulary—including Actual Occasion and Prehension—which defined this tradition.
- Charles Hartshorne (The Theologian): Following Whitehead, Hartshorne is the most important figure for the tradition’s intellectual reach. He systematically applied the logic of Process Philosophy to the concept of God, developing Process Theology.
- Henri Bergson (The Philosopher of Duration): The French philosopher of time and change is a crucial precursor. His concept of Duration (durée)—time as a continuous, indivisible, creative flow—is one of the most powerful rejections of static, traditional substance philosophy.
A Note on American Pragmatism
You might encounter other names associated with this process tradition, such as the founders of American Pragmatism: John Dewey, Charles Sanders Peirce, and William James.
A few years ago I read one of Dewey’s books on education and was surprised to recently learn he is considered part of Process Philosophy! While the Pragmatists did not use Whitehead’s specific jargon, their philosophical core is deeply compatible with the process worldview:
- Charles Sanders Peirce emphasized that knowledge and truth are processes—evolving products of ongoing communal inquiry, not static, final conclusions.
- William James focused on experience as a stream of consciousness, an ever-changing flow where moments transition seamlessly, reinforcing the idea of reality as fundamentally dynamic.
The Pragmatists’ focus on continuous change, evolution, and transactional experience firmly places them within the broad process tradition, even though their work developed independently of Whitehead’s specific metaphysical system.
Process Philosophy vs. Process Theology
Before we move on, it is essential to draw a clear line between the overarching philosophical system and its most famous application:
- Process Philosophy: This is the general metaphysical system. It describes the fundamental nature of all reality—space, time, causality, and experience. It is a branch of philosophy focused on being as becoming.
- Process Theology: This is a specific theological application of Process Philosophy’s insights to the nature of God. It imagines a God that is necessarily dynamic, relational, and involved in the world’s continuous process.
Process Philosophy invites us to see the entire cosmos as a creative, interconnected, and genuinely open system. Reality is the constant, co-creative flow.
🧠A Final Thought Experiment: Imaging the World
Before moving on, I encourage you to try a simple but profound thought experiment: Stop seeing the world as a collection of fixed objects, and try, just for a moment, to image it as a torrent of events.
Look around you.
Instead of seeing your phone as an inert, solid object, imagine it as a high-speed society—a stable, enduring pattern maintained by trillions of momentary, perishing actual occasions (atomic and electronic events) that constantly flow through it, binding it into its present form.
Instead of seeing yourself as a fixed substance, recognize yourself as a vast, complex society of occasions, a dynamic flame whose identity is maintained only through the continuous, relational process of becoming—moment by moment, memory by memory.
Whitehead’s system is difficult because it challenges our visual intuition. But if you can glimpse the world as a universe built entirely of occasions and societies, you’ve taken the essential step into the Process worldview.
đź“š Further Inquiry: Recommended Reading
If the idea of a universe built on events rather than things has captured your curiosity, here are the books I recommend to begin your journey into Process Philosophy and its scientific foundations, ordered from the most accessible to the foundational texts.
Disclaimer: As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. Some links below are affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you if you choose to make a purchase.
1. Accessible Introductions & Overviews (Start Here)
These books are highly recommended for clarity and immediate comprehension, ensuring a smooth entry into the core concepts.
- Process Metaphysics: An Introduction to Process Philosophy by Nicholas Rescher
- Focus: A concise, systematic, and historical overview of the entire process tradition, giving a strong academic foundation to the core metaphysical principles of becoming.
- Process-Relational Philosophy: An Introduction to Metaphysics and the Nature of Things by C. Robert Mesle
- Focus: This text clearly and concisely explains the fundamental philosophical concepts—Actuality, Experience, Relation, and Novelty—in plain language, preparing the reader for Whitehead.
2. Guides to the System (Intermediate Steps)
These books help the serious student navigate the complexity of the primary texts.
- A Key to Whitehead’s Process and Reality by Donald W. Sherburne
- Focus: Since Process and Reality is notoriously difficult, this book serves as a vital road map, carefully organizing and summarizing the main arguments and technical terminology to help readers master the system.
3. The Foundational Texts: Whitehead’s Primary Works (The Deep Dive)
These are the essential works directly from the system’s architect.
- Science and the Modern World by Alfred North Whitehead
- Focus (The Justification): The essential bridge text. Read this first to understand why Whitehead created process philosophy—it is his powerful critique of classical physics and his justification for a new, event-based system.
- Process and Reality by Alfred North Whitehead
- Focus (The System): Whitehead’s magnum opus. This is the complete, systematic exposition of his Process Philosophy (the Actual Occasion, Prehension, etc.). Only tackle this after reading one of the guides.
In the next post, we will dive into the most fascinating application of this worldview: Process Theology. We will explore how a universe of events requires us to rethink God, turning the traditional view of an all-powerful controller into a luring or persuasive divine partner, and how this affects our everyday ethics.
Leave a Reply