what exactly 'are' the real numbers ?

No.13848858 ViewReplyOriginalReport
as i was trying to study ahead for Real Analysis through several different books it became evident to me that /forall texts in the subject with the single exception being Rudin, have failed at giving a solid and rigorous definition as typically done in pure maths

why is this the case? I dont want to jump all the way to Rudin as im still not even an apprentince to an untrianed mathematician in the social hierarchy