Berkeley

Modern philosophy

Berkeley was an eighteenth-century Irish empiricist philosopher (1685–1753). He taught at Trinity College Dublin and was ordained as a priest in the Anglican Church. He is best known for his Principles of Human Knowledge, in which he develops the remarkable doctrine of immaterialism, but also for his Essay on a New Theory of Vision, a work on optics. He sailed to America with the aim of founding a college to train Anglican ministers, eventually returned to London, and ended his days in Oxford.

Berkeley's Works Summarised on This Site

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A Treatise Concerning the Principles of Human Knowledge

In this work Berkeley sets out his surprising doctrine of immaterialism, which he argues derives logically from a well-understood empiricism

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Biography: Life of Berkeley

Youth

George Berkeley was born in Ireland, in 1685, at Thomastown, into a noble Anglican family.

He began his studies at Kilkenny College and continued them at Trinity College, Dublin.

In 1707, he graduated but remained at the institution to teach Greek as a tutor.

The Philosopher

Two years later, he published his first work: An Essay Towards a New Theory of Vision. He was a precocious thinker — he was just twenty-two years old.

The book brought him a measure of renown; what is more, his conclusions, innovative for their time, are still considered valid today and inform current theories of optics.

The year 1710 was an eventful one.

First, he was ordained as a priest of the Anglican Church.

He published his second work, the Principles of Human Knowledge, which established Berkeley as one of the great exponents of idealism. This masterpiece, with its disconcerting conclusions, aroused both admiration and scepticism among his contemporaries.

It was in response to these objections that he wrote, in 1713, the Three Dialogues between Hylas and Philonous.

The Traveller

He travelled to England, where he was taken on as secretary and chaplain by Lord Peterborough, whom he accompanied on his European travels. In the course of these journeys he visited Italy, Spain, and France, where he wrote his treatise On Motion (De Motu).

This phase of his life lasted eight years. At its close, in 1721, he returned to Dublin, where he took holy orders, was awarded a doctorate in theology, and taught at Trinity College. He was appointed Dean of Derry, a position that came with a substantial annual income.

Four years later, he made a decisive turn, giving up his position and setting sail for America, where he planned to open a college for the training of priests and missionaries.

The voyage was no small undertaking, as he brought his library of twenty thousand volumes with him.

On his arrival, he bought a plantation near Newport, in Rhode Island, and lived there for several years, waiting for funds promised by the English government to bring his project to fruition. The funds never materialised, and in 1732 he decided to return to London.

The Bishop

He was appointed bishop of Cloyne, in Ireland, a position he held until his retirement in 1752.

During this later period of his life, he published The Analyst, a critical examination of the foundations of science that exerted a significant influence on subsequent developments in mathematics.

He also wrote a number of minor works, among them a treatise on the medicinal virtues of tar water.

In 1753, he died in Oxford.

In his honour, a town in the United States bears his name.

Main Works

An Essay Towards a New Theory of Vision
A Treatise Concerning the Principles of Human Knowledge
Three Dialogues Between Hylas and Philonous