George Berkeley: A Philosophical Life

Description

A comprehensive intellectual biography of the Enlightenment philosopher In George Berkeley: A Philosophical Life, Tom Jones provides a comprehensive account of the life and work of the pre-eminent Irish philosopher of the Enlightenment. From his early brilliance as a student and fellow at Trinity College Dublin to his later years as Bishop of Cl

Tom Jones is Reader in the School of English at the University of St Andrews. His books include Pope and Berkeley: The Language of Poetry and Philosophy and an edition of Pope's Essay on Man (Princeton). He lives in Dundee, Scotland.

"A Choice Outstanding Academic Title of the Year" "What Jones has revealed is the fascinating combination of chaos and coherence laced through Berkeley's life."---Alex Dean, Prospect Magazine "[Tom] Jones...presents Berkeley's life through his voluminous writings, the views of his friends and family, and the opinions of those who encountered him and his writings. The result is a big book, packed with quotations from Berkeley's works, excerpts from letters, records of journeys and activities , and details about Berkeley's social an personal life and the people in it. Reading it requires stamina, but the rewards is a better acquaintance with a man who, as the subtitle of the book indicates, lived a life under the influence of his philosophy."---Janna Thompson, Australian Book Review "Tom Jones has written a superb biography about the mind of a reactionary, a powerful thinker whose curiosity about the world was shaped by his religious and political conservatism."---Sean Sheehan, Prisma "There is so much to like about Tom Jones's George Berkeley: A Philosophical Life. This new biography is an impressive effort to unearth the whole man: Jones leaves no page unturned, no sermon unsummarized, no piece of Berkelean writing, however obscure, unrevisited. . . . this monumental work will likely remain the book on Berkeley for some time."---Costica Bradatan, Times Literary Supplement "Magisterial."---David Lorimer, Paradigm Explorer "Jones' book is a product of titanic labor and meets the highest standards of intellectual biography. Jones suggests new interpretations of some of Berkeley's thoughts and notes, finds new biographical materials, and offers a comprehensive approach to the whole body of Berkeley's thought."---Artem Besedin, Berkeley Studies "Jones's biography could not have arrived at a better time, just as public debates on the active participation of Irish people in empire and the slave trade proliferate and intensify. . . . It is easy to "de-commemorate" a thinker . . . it is much more difficult to critically engage with their thought and to gauge their influence, all while remaining conscious of their shortcomings. In this, as in much else, Jones provides a model."---Adam Coleman, Dublin Review of Books