Herbart's philosophy is a realism in that it postulates that reality is not 'set' by the 'I' as idealism claims but, as it is independent of the 'I', it is an absolute position.
Herbart will say that real things can be captured from experience through concepts, but the conceptual multiplicity through which we grasp things does not reflect reality as it is, this is simple and devoid of 'relationships' and 'negations'. This implies an elimination of the central concepts of the dialegic of Hegel, which is even more evident when one considers that for Herbart the fundamental tendency of all being is' self-preservation ', that is, to maintain one's own independence. Herbart was also a notable psychologist who contributed to associationism and pedagogy.