Name: A Treatise Concerning the Principles of Human Knowledge
Author: George Berkeley
ISBN: 9780198751618

A Treatise Concerning the Principles of Human Knowledge

George Berkeley

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Author Description

In this exceptional work Berkeley makes the striking claim that physical things consist of nothing but ideas and therefore do not exist outside the mind. This claim establishes him as the founder of the idealist tradition in philosophy. The text printed in this volume is the 1734 edition of the Principles, which represents Berkeley's mature thought. Also included are four important letters between George Berkeley and Samuel Johnson, written between 1729 and 1730, an analysis of the Principles, and a glossary.

Menrva's Summary

THE THESIS

Does the existence of physical objects depend entirely upon their perception by a conscious mind? George Berkeley, an influential 18th-century Irish philosopher, argues for the doctrine of immaterialism, asserting that material substance is a philosophical fiction. By examining the nature of ideas and the limitations of sensory perception, he constructs a framework where reality is composed solely of minds and the ideas they perceive, effectively challenging the prevailing empiricist assumptions of his era.

THE SCOPE MAP

What You Will Find

A rigorous defense of subjective idealism and the rejection of abstract material substance.
An analysis of the relationship between sensory perception and the existence of objects.
The complete text of the 1734 edition of the Principles, representing the author's final revisions.
Supplementary correspondence between Berkeley and Samuel Johnson providing context for his philosophical arguments.

THE AUTHORITY PERSPECTIVE

Scholars recognize this work as a foundational text in the history of Western philosophy and a primary source for understanding the development of idealism. Readers frequently note the dense, technical nature of the prose, which requires careful study to grasp the nuances of Berkeley's metaphysical claims.

Page Count:
248

Publication Date:
1998-05-28

Publisher:
Oxford University Press

ISBN-10:
0198751613

ISBN-13:
9780198751618

Non-Fiction

Philosophy

Epistemology

Metaphysics

Idealism

Knowledge Theory