(Cross-posted from blog.kennypearce.net.)
One of the interesting things about George Berkeley as a historical figure is that he labors under the peculiar belief that he is writing philosophy out of pastoral concerns. I like to illustrate Berkeley's purposes by reference to the subtitles he gave to his works. The Treatise on the Principles of Human Knowledge is subtitled, "wherein the Chief Causes of Error and Difficulty in the Sciences, with the Grounds of Scepticism, Atheism, and Irreligion, are inquired into." Berkeley thinks he has discovered two philosophical doctrines which are indeed "the Chief Causes of Error and Difficulty in the Sciences" and also "the Grounds of Scepticism, Atheism, and Irreligion." These are the epistemic/linguistic doctrine of abstraction, and the metaphysical doctrine of corporeal substance.
2 years 27 weeks ago
2 years 35 weeks ago
2 years 40 weeks ago
3 years 11 weeks ago
3 years 20 weeks ago
3 years 20 weeks ago
3 years 20 weeks ago
3 years 21 weeks ago
3 years 21 weeks ago
3 years 21 weeks ago