Dialogues between Hylas and Philonous


Book Description

Three Dialogues between Hylas and Philonous, or simply Three Dialogues, is a 1713 book on metaphysics and idealism written by George Berkeley. Taking the form of a dialogue, the book was written as a response to the criticism Berkeley experienced after publishing A Treatise Concerning the Principles of Human Knowledge. Three important concepts discussed in the Three Dialogues are perceptual relativity, the conceivability/master argument[a] and Berkeley's phenomenalism. Perceptual relativity argues that the same object can appear to have different characteristics (e.g. shape) depending on the observer's perspective. Since objective features of objects cannot change without an inherent change in the object itself, shape must not be an objective feature.




Three Dialogues between Hylas and Philonous


Book Description

This is a new critical edition of Berkeley’s 1734 (third edition, first 1713) Three Dialogues, a text that is deservedly one of the most challenging and beloved classics of modern philosophy. The heart of the work is the dispute between materialism and idealism, two fundamentally opposed positions that are embodied by Hylas and Philonous, the characters in this philosophical drama. The book is packed with brilliant arguments and counter-arguments of an extraordinarily sophisticated nature. Amid all this philosophical swordplay one would think that there could be scant room for the characters to develop any sort of personality. Yet in Berkeley’s hands, and with his literary gifts, the interlocutors are both vivid and funny. The dialogue deals with some of the most important perennial problems of philosophy, including: the materialism-idealism dispute, skepticism in rationalist and empiricist epistemology, the conflict over apriorism and aposteriorism, rationalism versus empiricism, the existence and nature of God, the philosophy of science, philosophy of mathematics, abstract general ideas, the role of perception in human knowledge, and the metaphysics of causation. This edition combines a usefully annotated version of Berkeley’s complete original text with a substantial critical introduction, a chronology of events in Berkeley’s life and career, and supplementary annotated appendices of original sources from thinkers relevant to Berkeley’s work.




Three Dialogues Between Hylas and Philonous (Classic Reprint)


Book Description

Excerpt from Three Dialogues Between Hylas and Philonous The contents of the three Dialogues. Which are a popular presentation of the Principles. And were written in refutation of the objections that had been raised to the new doctrine of sensible as distinguished from absolute things. Propounded in the earlier work. May be briefly summarised as follows: The First Dialogue aims to show the repugnancy or contra dictery nature of the philosophical dogma of the absolute existence of a material reality or world-in-itself. Independent of a perceiving or conceiving mind; the argument being that under no circum stances can such a material world be perceived either immediately or mediately. The Second Dialogue seeks to show that the exist ence of this metaphysical. Supersensible world of matter also can not be reached by inference. That is. Cannot be demonstrated. The Third Dialogue is devoted to the refutation of objections; for example. That the new doctrine is skeptical; that. With absolute material substance. It also implicitly disproves the existence of absolute spiritual substance. That is to say. Of the ego; etc.. Etc. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.







Berkeley's World


Book Description

Tom Stoneham offers a clear and detailed study of Berkeley's metaphysics and epistemology, as presented in his classic work Three Dialogues between Hylas and Philonous, originally published in 1713 and still widely studied. Stoneham shows that Berkeley is an important and systematic philosopher whose work is still of relevance to philosophers today.




Berkeley's Three Dialogues


Book Description

This is the first volume of essays on Berkeley's Three Dialogues, a classic of early modern philosophy. Leading experts cover all the central issues in the text: the rejection of material substance, the nature of perception and reality, the limits of human knowledge, and the perceived threats of skepticism, atheism, and immorality.




Berkeley's Argument for Idealism


Book Description

In the early 18th century George Berkeley made the astonishing claim that physical objects such as tables and chairs are nothing but collections of ideas. Samuel Rickless presents a new account of Berkeley's controversial argument, and suggests it is the philosopher's greatest legacy: not only is it valid, but it may well be sound.