Berkeley: Philosophical Writings

Hardback

Main Details

Title Berkeley: Philosophical Writings
Authors and Contributors      By (author) Desmond M. Clarke
SeriesCambridge Texts in the History of Philosophy
Physical Properties
Format:Hardback
Pages:386
Dimensions(mm): Height 235,Width 153
Category/GenreWestern philosophy - c 1600 to c 1900
ISBN/Barcode 9780521881357
ClassificationsDewey:192
Audience
Tertiary Education (US: College)

Publishing Details

Publisher Cambridge University Press
Imprint Cambridge University Press
Publication Date 22 January 2009
Publication Country United Kingdom

Description

George Berkeley (1685-1753) was a university teacher, a missionary, and later a Church of Ireland bishop. The over-riding objective of his long philosophical career was to counteract objections to religious belief that resulted from new philosophies associated with the Scientific Revolution. Accordingly, he argued against scepticism and atheism in the Principles and the Three Dialogues; he rejected theories of force in the Essay on Motion; he offered a new theory of meaning for religious language in Alciphron; and he modified his earlier immaterialism in Siris by speculating about the body's influence on the soul. His radical empiricism and scientific instrumentalism, which rejected the claims of the sciences to provide a realistic interpretation of phenomena, are still influential today. This edition provides texts from the full range of Berkeley's contributions to philosophy, together with an introduction by Desmond M. Clarke that sets them in their historical and philosophical contexts.

Author Biography

Desmond M. Clarke is Emeritus Professor of Philosophy at University College Cork.