What is Object in Python?

Introduction

We have the concept of classes and objects in Python to keep related things together as it is an "object-oriented-language".

Let's take the example of a bookshelf. Here we sort the books into different shelves according to their genre. The shelves are the classes, while the different books are the “objects”. Do refer to the article Classes in Python, before going through this blog for better understanding. We can also relate our programming with real-world objects through objects in Python. We will discuss such scenarios with some examples later in this article.

Unlike other programming languages, Python revolves around the concept of OOPs. This way, we can keep related objects and functionality together so that it helps us to manage our code in an efficient manner. Classes and objects are two main aspects of OOPs.

Classes are user-defined blueprints that help us create an “object”. Objects are the instances of a particular class. Every other element in Python will be an object of some class, such as the string, dictionary, number(10,40), etc. will be an object of some corresponding built-in class(int, str) in Python. Objects are different copies of the class with some actual values.

Let's take an example to understand this concept better. Here, we have the blueprint of a car on the left side. This is known as the class, while on the right side, we have some of the models of the cars based on that blueprint, which is known as the objects(instances of the class) of the particular class. Here we would learn what is object in Python in detail.

Refer to the following image below:

Creating an object in Python

After declaring a class in Python when we create an instance of that class, it is known as the object of the class. The process of creating an object is called instantiation. The classes are essentially like a template to create the objects. The object is created using the name of the class. The object shares all the behavior and attributes of the class, such as the variables and values present in the class. Also, the object inherits the functions mentioned in the class, along with the class's behavior.

Before creating an object, we should know that it contains such properties to distinguish it from others.

• State - The state of an object is determined by the attributes of the object(i.e., the different items we have in the class, which the object inherits.).
• Behavior - The behavior is represented by the methods of the object. It shows the difference and similarities of the functionality of an object to other objects.
• Identity - Each and every object must be unique on its own. We can make this by giving it a unique name(like obj1, obj3, new_obj, etc.).

The syntax of creating an object of a particular class is as follows:

Here in comparison to the above example, the object_name is like the car models, namely, Hyundai, Ford, etc. The class_name is similar to the car blueprint. The arguments are just like the car's features, which can pass to some particular car models(objects).

Accessing Object's variables in Python

Let's take an example. Here we have created an object of the class named Scaler.

Output:

In the above code snippet, we have created a class named Scaler, which has two attributes, a and b. We created an object called “obj” for that class. Using the object, along with the dot(.) operator, we accessed the values of the attributes(here a & b)

Note: A single class can have multiple objects(instances), such as obj1, obj2, etc. Here in the above code, obj1 is accessing the attributes a & b of the class Scaler, while obj2 is accessing the attribute c.

Accessing Object's functions in Python

As we know, inside classes, we can declare functions, which are known as methods. Objects can also contain such methods(functions) and pass the arguments through those methods. Methods of an object are the corresponding function of that particular class.

Let's take an example to understand this concept. We will create a method in the Scaler class and execute it on the object.

Output

In the above code snippet, we have created a class named Scaler. In it, we have defined two methods(_init_ & new). We have created an object “obj2”, which is the instance of the class, and it accesses the function new(), while also passing three arguments. This way, the object can access the functions.

Note:.

a. The init method is called each and every time a new object is being created from any class. The init method is similar to the constructors as in other programming languages(C++, Java). Such a method contains statements that would be executed during the run time(time of object creation). This method begins with a double underscore(__).

b. Also, the first argument which is passed in the function of the class must be the object itself. So it’s conventionally called “self”, passed as the first argument, followed by the subsequent arguments (such as age, hobby, etc.). The “self” refers to the current instance of the class. We can call this parameter by any name other than “self” if we want.

Modifying Object's properties in Python

Once we declare objects, we can later modify their properties and values. Let's take an example to understand how this works. Here we would be creating a class named Scaler and would declare an object. We would be trying to change the object property by changing the attribute value.

Output

Here in the above code snippet, we set the value of the object “obj1”, from 10 to 200. By accessing the value of the attribute(here, it is “a”) through the object (i.e., obj1.a) and assigning a different value to it, we can change any of the properties of each and every object of a class.

Deleting Object's properties in Python

We can even delete the properties(also known as attributes) of an object with the help of the del keyword. Continuing with the previous example of the Scaler class, here we delete the “a” property from the “obj1” object.

Deleting an Object in Python

You created an object earlier and now want to delete it? We also have a way to delete an object which was created earlier in the code by using the del keyword.

Note: After deleting the object of a class, the name of the object which is bound to it gets deleted, but however the object continues to exist in the memory with no name assigned to it. Later it is automatically destroyed by a process known as garbage collection.

See Also:

1. Garbage Collection in Python.
2. Indentation in Python.
3. Python Property.