The Emergence of Physicalism: How a Metaphysics Became Invisible

Abstract: Physicalism—the view that reality is fundamentally physical and that consciousness is derivative or reducible—now functions less as a defended thesis than as the background assumption of serious intellectual discourse. This essay does not argue for or against physicalism's truth. It asks a different question: how did this particular metaphysical framework come to feel like common sense rather than doctrine? The answer is not primarily philosophical. Physicalism's dominance emerged from a convergence of methodological success, political and religious pressures, industrial transformation, institutional incentives, and cultural shifts—until its status as a metaphysical position faded from view. Understanding this history does not refute physicalism, but it does reveal its contingency. What feels inevitable is shown to be historically situated. This clarity is a precondition for responsible inquiry. Part of the Return to Consciousness research program—18 philosophical essays exploring consciousness-first metaphysics. Full project: https://brunoton.github.io/return-to-consciousness/