Berkeley: An Interpretation

by Kenneth P. Winkler

George Berkeley (1685-1753) held that matter does not exist, and that the sensations we take to be caused by an indifferent and independent world are instead caused directly by God. Nature has no existence apart from the spirits who transmit and receive it. In this book, Winkler presents these conclusions as natural (though by no means inevitable) consequences of Berkeley's reflections on such topics as representation, abstraction, necessary truth, and cause and effect. He offers new interpretations of Berkeley's views on unperceived objects, corpuscularian science, and our knowledge of God and other minds.

Genres: Philosophy

332 pages, Paperback

First published April 6, 1989

Reviews

[Kevin K · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good survey covering many aspects of Berkeley's philosophy. Berkeley is more subtle than generally thought, and Winkler does a good job of exploring the complexities. On the minus side, I felt the book was too long and disconnected. Many parts were excellent (I'm sure I'll reread them) but the work meandered and didn't come together as a whole. Depending on your interests, this book may or may not meet your needs. Its primary focus is historical exegesis — ferreting out Berkeley's true position. It doesn't venture into the most interesting topics (in my opinion): extensions of Berkeley's ideas, assessment of their viability as a position in modern philosophy, or modern developments with Berkeleian overtones like the theory of relativity, virtual reality, the informational universe, or quantum weirdness.