Berkeley's idealism : a critical examination / Georges Dicker.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Dicker, Georges, 1942-

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Idealism.

Idea (Philosophy).

Metaphysics.

First philosophy.

Berkeley, George, 1685-1753.

Berkeley, George.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (xiv, 310 pages)

Other Title:

Critical examination

Place of Publication:

New York : Oxford University Press, 2011.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

In his two most important works, the Principles of Human Knowledge and Three Dialogues between Hylas and Philonous, Berkeley argues, against the prevailing Cartesian-Lockean worldview, that there is no such thing as matter, that only minds and ideas exist, and that physical things are nothing but collections of ideas. In defense of this idealism, he advances a battery of challenging arguments, and he puts forward an alternative world‐view that purports to refute both skepticism and atheism. This book expounds and critically examines both the destructive and the constructive sides of Berkeley's thought, against the background of key elements of the mainstream views that he rejected. Its analysis of Berkeley's arguments is text‐based, accessible, and rigorous, and it shows that the Principles and the Dialogues dovetail and complement each other in a seamless way, rather than being two self‐contained defenses of idealism. In addition to relating Berkeley's work to the main thinkers that he reacted against, the book discusses work by several contemporary Berkeley scholars, and uses notions and distinctions forged by recent and contemporary analytic philosophers.

Contents:

The theory of primary and secondary qualities

The representational theory of perception and the problem of perception

Locke's defense of the senses

Berkeley's case for idealism in Principles I, sections 1-7

Direct arguments for idealism in the first dialogue between Hylas and Philonous

The argument from the ego-centric predicament

The likeness principle

Berkeley's attack on the theory of primary and secondary qualities

Substance/Substratum

The epistemological argument

Mind

God, nature, agency, and causation in perception

Continuity

Intersubjectivity.

Notes:

Description based on print version record.

Includes bibliographical references and indexes.

ISBN:

0-19-538145-9

1-283-16451-5

9786613164513

0-19-970079-6

0-19-989712-3

OCLC:

744520161

Publisher Number:

9786613164513