Berkeley's Argument for Idealism

By: Samuel C Rickless

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Hardcover | 3 January 2013

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Hardcover
222 Pages

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21.59 x 13.97 x 1.6

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Samuel C. Rickless presents a novel interpretation of the thought of George Berkeley. In A Treatise Concerning the Principles of Human Knowledge (1710) and Three Dialogues Between Hylas and Philonous (1713), Berkeley argues for the astonishing view that physical objects (such as tables and chairs) are nothing but collections of ideas (idealism); that there is no such thing as material substance (immaterialism); that abstract ideas are impossible (anti-abstractionism); and that an idea can be like nothing but an idea (the likeness principle). It is a matter of great controversy what Berkeley's argument for idealism is and whether it succeeds. Most scholars believe that the argument is based on immaterialism, anti-abstractionism, or the likeness principle. In Berkeley's Argument for Idealism, Rickless argues that Berkeley distinguishes between two kinds of abstraction, "singling" abstraction and 'generalizing' abstraction; that his argument for idealism depends on the
impossibility of singling abstraction but not on the impossibility of generalizing abstraction; and that the argument depends neither on immaterialism nor the likeness principle. According to Rickless, the heart of the argument for idealism rests on the distinction between mediate and immediate perception, and in particular on the thesis that everything that is perceived by means of the senses is immediately perceived. After analyzing the argument, Rickless concludes that it is valid and may well be sound. This is Berkeley's most enduring philosophical legacy.

Industry Reviews

Rickless's book is an engaging and important work in the history of philosophy * Journal of the History of Philosophy *
Rickless has produced a thoughtful interpretation of considerable ingenuity. Of particular interest is his original and compelling reading of Berkeleys distinction between immediate and mediate perception. * Keota Fields, The Philosophical Quarterly *
Rickless' book provides a compelling and coherent picture of Berkeley's views on immediate and mediate perception, of Berkeley's ontology of sensible objects, and of the ways in which Berkeley's major metaphysical works, PHK and 3D, fit together. This book is an important addition to Berkeley's scholarship, and is to be roundly recommended. * Melissa Frankel, Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews *
Samuel C. Rickless Berkeleys Argument for Idealism is an excellent book. It is clearly written, tightly focused, and rigorously argued ... a must-read for historians of early modern philosophy ... I am confident that it will shape this debate for many years to come. * Robert Watt, European Journal of Philosophy *

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