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PhilosophyA Treatise Concerning the Principles of Human KnowledgeGeorge BerkeleyA Treatise Concerning the Principles of Human Knowledge

A Treatise Concerning the Principles of Human Knowledge

George Berkeley

PhilosophyEnglish
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In this short treatise, George Berkeley sets out the startling theory that material objects do not exist outside the mind: everything we know of a table or a…

Catalogue details

Author
George Berkeley
Category
Philosophy
Language
English
Source
Project Gutenberg

About this book

In this short treatise, George Berkeley sets out the startling theory that material objects do not exist outside the mind: everything we know of a table or a tree is a collection of ideas, colours, shapes and sensations, and 'to be is to be perceived'. What keeps the world in being when no human is looking is the constant perception of God, and the belief in matter, he argues, is not only unnecessary but the root of scepticism and atheism.

Context and significance

Berkeley published the Treatise in 1710, at twenty-five, and three years later presented the same ideas in more popular form in his Three Dialogues Between Hylas and Philonous. Compare Hume's Enquiry.

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