 One can be realists about metaphysical explanation to varying degrees. An extreme realist view conjoins a realism about metaphysical dependence relations (they are themselves completely objective and mind-independent) with the view that metaphysical explanations just are the relevant kinds of dependence relations. Most philosophers do not think metaphysical explanation is quite like this. An attractive, widely held view is that metaphysical explanations have both a representational component and a worldly component, as is commonly the case when people adopt a version of the separatist view discussed above  (§3).  So long as the worldly component of metaphysical explanation (generally taken to be a non-causal dependence relation of some sort) is itself objective and mind-independent, the relevant account of metaphysical explanation is generally considered realist.