George Berkeley
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| '''George Berkeley''' ([[12 March]] [[1685]] – [[14 January]] [[1753]]), also known as '''Bishop Berkeley''', was an [[Ireland|Irish]] [[philosopher]]. His primary philosophical achievement was the advancement of a theory he called "[[immaterialism]]" (later referred to as "[[subjective idealism]]" by others). This theory, summed up in his dictum, ''"Esse est percipi"'' ("[[Existence|To be]] is to be [[Perception|perceived]]"), contends that individuals can only directly know [[Sense|sensations]] and [[idea]]s of [[Object (philosophy)|objects]], not [[abstraction]]s such as "[[matter]]." His most widely-read works are ''A [[Treatise Concerning the Principles of Human Knowledge]]'' (1710) and ''[[Three Dialogues between Hylas and Philonous]]'' (1713), in which the characters Philonous and Hylas represent Berkeley himself and his contemporary [[John Locke]]. In 1734 he published ''[[The Analyst]]'', a critique of the foundations of [[calculus]], which was influential in the development of mathematics. | '''George Berkeley''' ([[12 March]] [[1685]] – [[14 January]] [[1753]]), also known as '''Bishop Berkeley''', was an [[Ireland|Irish]] [[philosopher]]. His primary philosophical achievement was the advancement of a theory he called "[[immaterialism]]" (later referred to as "[[subjective idealism]]" by others). This theory, summed up in his dictum, ''"Esse est percipi"'' ("[[Existence|To be]] is to be [[Perception|perceived]]"), contends that individuals can only directly know [[Sense|sensations]] and [[idea]]s of [[Object (philosophy)|objects]], not [[abstraction]]s such as "[[matter]]." His most widely-read works are ''A [[Treatise Concerning the Principles of Human Knowledge]]'' (1710) and ''[[Three Dialogues between Hylas and Philonous]]'' (1713), in which the characters Philonous and Hylas represent Berkeley himself and his contemporary [[John Locke]]. In 1734 he published ''[[The Analyst]]'', a critique of the foundations of [[calculus]], which was influential in the development of mathematics. | ||
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| + | '''George Berkeley''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|b|ɑːr|k|l|i}};<ref>{{cite journal| last=Watson| first=Richard A. | author-link = Richard Watson (philosopher) | title=Berkeley Is Pronounced Barclay| journal=[[Berkeley Newsletter]]| issue=13| year=1993–1994| pages=1–3| url=http://people.hsc.edu/berkeleystudies/past_issues_pdf/no13-1993-94.pdf| access-date=8 November 2010}}</ref><ref>[http://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/berkeley "Berkeley"] entry in ''[[Collins English Dictionary]]''.</ref> 12 March 1685<!-- According to 'An Account of the Life of George Berkeley, D. D. Late Bishop of Cloyne in Ireland' by Joseph Stock, published in 1776 (https://www.maths.tcd.ie/~dwilkins/Berkeley/Stock/Life.html), Berkeley was born 12 March 1684, not 1685. This may be an error by Stock, but interesting to note nevertheless. -->{{spaced ndash}}14 January 1753) – known as '''Bishop Berkeley''' ([[Bishop of Cloyne]] of the [[Anglican]] [[Church of Ireland]]) – was an [[Anglo-Irish people|Anglo-Irish]] philosopher whose primary achievement was the advancement of a theory he called "immaterialism" (later referred to as "[[subjective idealism]]" by others). This theory denies the existence of [[matter|material substance]] and instead contends that familiar objects like tables and chairs are [[idea]]s [[perception|perceived]] by the [[mind]]s and, as a result, cannot exist without being perceived. Berkeley is also known for his critique of [[abstraction]], an important premise in his argument for immaterialism.<ref name=Jesseph/> | ||
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| + | In 1709, Berkeley published his superabundant first major work, ''[[s:An Essay Towards a New Theory of Vision|An Essay Towards a New Theory of Vision]]'', in which he discussed the limitations of human vision and advanced the theory that the proper objects of sight are not material objects, but light and colour.<ref>See {{Cite book |last=Berkeley |first=George |year=1709 |title= An Essay Towards a New Theory of Vision |edition= 2 |publisher=Jeremy Pepyat |publication-date=1709 |location=Dublin |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1o85AAAAcAAJ&q=editions%3AdyOzLl2K0NEC&pg=PR1}}</ref> This foreshadowed his chief philosophical work, ''[[A Treatise Concerning the Principles of Human Knowledge]]'', in 1710, which, after its poor reception, he rewrote in dialogue form and published under the title ''[[Three Dialogues between Hylas and Philonous]]'' in 1713.<ref>{{cite journal| last=Turbayne| first=C. M.| author-link=Colin Murray Turbayne| title=Berkeley's Two Concepts of Mind| journal=[[Philosophy and Phenomenological Research]]| volume=20| issue=1| date=September 1959| pages=85–92| jstor=2104957| doi=10.2307/2104957}}<br /> Repr. in {{cite book| last1=Engle| first1=Gale| last2=Taylor| first2=Gabriele| title=Berkeley's Principles of Human Knowledge: Critical Studies| url=https://archive.org/details/berkeleysprincip00engl| url-access=registration| location=Belmont, CA| publisher=Wadsworth| year=1968| pages=[https://archive.org/details/berkeleysprincip00engl/page/24 24–33]}} In this collection of essays, Turbayne's work comprised two papers that had been published in [[Philosophy and Phenomenological Research]]: | ||
| + | * "Berkeley's Two Concepts of Mind" | ||
| + | * C. Turbayne's reply to S. A. Grave, "A Note on Berkeley's Conception of the Mind" (''[[Philosophy and Phenomenological Research]]'', 1962, vol. 22, No. 4, {{JSTOR|2105263}}, {{doi|10.2307/2105263}}).</ref> In this book, Berkeley's views were represented by Philonous (Greek: "lover of mind"), while Hylas ("[[hyle]]", Greek: "matter") embodies the Irish thinker's opponents, in particular [[John Locke]]. | ||
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| + | Berkeley argued against [[Isaac Newton]]'s doctrine of [[absoluteness|absolute]] [[space]], time and [[Motion (physics)|motion]] in ''[[De Motu (Berkeley's essay)|De Motu]]''<ref name="Berkeley's Philosophical Writings 1974">''Berkeley's Philosophical Writings'', New York: Collier, 1974, Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 64-22680</ref> (''On Motion''), published 1721. His arguments were a precursor to the views of [[Ernst Mach|Mach]] and [[Albert Einstein|Einstein]].<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Popper|first1=K.R.|title=A note on Berkeley as precursor of Mach|journal=The British Journal for the Philosophy of Science|date=1 May 1953|volume=IV|issue=13|pages=26–36|doi=10.1093/bjps/IV.13.26|s2cid=123072861}}</ref><ref>Also published: ''Conjectures and Refutations'', Volume I, "A note on Berkeley as precursor of Mach and Einstein", Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1969.</ref> In 1732, he published ''[[Alciphron (book)|Alciphron]]'', a Christian [[apologetics|apologetic]] against the [[free-thinkers]], and in 1734, he published ''[[The Analyst]]'', a critique of the foundations of [[calculus]], which was influential in the development of mathematics.<ref>[https://jhollandtranslations.com/docs/HOLLAND-George-Berkeley.pdf jhollandtranslations.com]</ref> | ||
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| + | Interest in Berkeley's work increased after World War II because he tackled many of the issues of paramount interest to philosophy in the 20th century, such as the problems of perception, the difference between primary and secondary qualities, and the importance of language.<ref>{{cite book|editor1-first=Colin |editor1-last=Turbayne|title=Berkeley: critical and interpretive essays|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=RExF10reT9wC&q=Turbayne |year=1982 |publisher= University of Minnesota Press|location=Minneapolis, MN|isbn=978-0-8166-1065-5}}</ref> | ||
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"If a tree falls in a forest and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound?" 'However, Berkeley had written (Dialogues between Hylas and Philonous, II): “The brain . . . being a sensible thing, exists only in the mind. Now, I would fain know whether you think it reasonable to suppose, that one idea or thing existing in the mind, occasions all other ideas. And if you think so, pray how do you account for the origin of that primary idea or brain itself?”' “ . . . in consequence of your own principles, it should follow that you are only a system of floating ideas, without any substance to support them. . . . And as there is no more meaning in spiritual substance than in material substance, the one is to be exploded as well as the other.” --quoted in Borges, "A New Refutation of Time" "In "Tlön, Uqbar, Orbis Tertius" (1940) Borges playfully explores the imaginary world Tlön where the 18th century philosophical subjective idealism of George Berkeley is viewed as common sense and "the doctrine of materialism" is considered a heresy, a scandal, and a paradox." --Sholem Stein |
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George Berkeley (12 March 1685 – 14 January 1753), also known as Bishop Berkeley, was an Irish philosopher. His primary philosophical achievement was the advancement of a theory he called "immaterialism" (later referred to as "subjective idealism" by others). This theory, summed up in his dictum, "Esse est percipi" ("To be is to be perceived"), contends that individuals can only directly know sensations and ideas of objects, not abstractions such as "matter." His most widely-read works are A Treatise Concerning the Principles of Human Knowledge (1710) and Three Dialogues between Hylas and Philonous (1713), in which the characters Philonous and Hylas represent Berkeley himself and his contemporary John Locke. In 1734 he published The Analyst, a critique of the foundations of calculus, which was influential in the development of mathematics.
George Berkeley (Template:IPAc-en;<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>"Berkeley" entry in Collins English Dictionary.</ref> 12 March 1685Template:Spaced ndash14 January 1753) – known as Bishop Berkeley (Bishop of Cloyne of the Anglican Church of Ireland) – was an Anglo-Irish philosopher whose primary achievement was the advancement of a theory he called "immaterialism" (later referred to as "subjective idealism" by others). This theory denies the existence of material substance and instead contends that familiar objects like tables and chairs are ideas perceived by the minds and, as a result, cannot exist without being perceived. Berkeley is also known for his critique of abstraction, an important premise in his argument for immaterialism.<ref name=Jesseph/>
In 1709, Berkeley published his superabundant first major work, An Essay Towards a New Theory of Vision, in which he discussed the limitations of human vision and advanced the theory that the proper objects of sight are not material objects, but light and colour.<ref>See Template:Cite book</ref> This foreshadowed his chief philosophical work, A Treatise Concerning the Principles of Human Knowledge, in 1710, which, after its poor reception, he rewrote in dialogue form and published under the title Three Dialogues between Hylas and Philonous in 1713.<ref>Template:Cite journal
Repr. in Template:Cite book In this collection of essays, Turbayne's work comprised two papers that had been published in Philosophy and Phenomenological Research:
- "Berkeley's Two Concepts of Mind"
- C. Turbayne's reply to S. A. Grave, "A Note on Berkeley's Conception of the Mind" (Philosophy and Phenomenological Research, 1962, vol. 22, No. 4, Template:JSTOR, Template:Doi).</ref> In this book, Berkeley's views were represented by Philonous (Greek: "lover of mind"), while Hylas ("hyle", Greek: "matter") embodies the Irish thinker's opponents, in particular John Locke.
Berkeley argued against Isaac Newton's doctrine of absolute space, time and motion in De Motu<ref name="Berkeley's Philosophical Writings 1974">Berkeley's Philosophical Writings, New York: Collier, 1974, Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 64-22680</ref> (On Motion), published 1721. His arguments were a precursor to the views of Mach and Einstein.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>Also published: Conjectures and Refutations, Volume I, "A note on Berkeley as precursor of Mach and Einstein", Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1969.</ref> In 1732, he published Alciphron, a Christian apologetic against the free-thinkers, and in 1734, he published The Analyst, a critique of the foundations of calculus, which was influential in the development of mathematics.<ref>jhollandtranslations.com</ref>
Interest in Berkeley's work increased after World War II because he tackled many of the issues of paramount interest to philosophy in the 20th century, such as the problems of perception, the difference between primary and secondary qualities, and the importance of language.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
