Browse audiobooks by George Berkeley, listen to samples and when you're ready head over to Audiobooks.com where you can get 3 FREE audiobooks on us
Berkeley’s Three Dialogues between Hylas and Philonous
Berkeley uses the Socratic mode of inquiry in 'Three Dialogues between Hylas and Philonous' to question fundamental beliefs about knowledge and reality. These dialogues are between Hylas (whose name is derived from the ancient Greek word for matter) and Philonous, whose name means 'lover of mind.' The new physical sciences developed in the seventeenth century supported the materialism proposed by Thomas Hobbes and several other philosophers. This worldview proclaimed that all of reality consists of nothing but matter in motion, thus promoting atheism and ethical skepticism. The implications for politics, ethics, and religion caused concern among leading intellectuals in the eighteenth century. Whatever the value of the positive claims presented in this work, Berkeley foreshadows the philosophical impact of twentieth century physics, which challenges the foundations of such materialism and calls for a better understanding of both the physical and the mental aspects of reality.
George Berkeley (Author), Albert A. Anderson, William Schuller (Narrator)
Audiobook
Three Dialogues Between Hylas and Philonous
Three Dialogues between Hylas and Philonous was the final statement by the empiricist philosopher George Berkeley, Bishop of Coyne, (1685-1753) on his views concerning subjective idealism, couched in the famous statement ‘esse is percipi' - to be is to be perceived (mixing Latin with a bit of English was Berkeley's idiosyncrasy!). In his first book on the subject, A Treatise Concerning the Principles of Human Knowledge, Berkeley proposed that the physical world exists only in the experiences minds have of it. It was published in 1710, but encountered robust criticism. In answer to this, Berkeley re-wrote the work in the form of three dialogues, casting himself as Philonous (derived from the Greek ‘lover of the mind') in debate with Hylas (derived from the Greek for ‘matter'). Set against a world view formed by Newtonian science and philosophers such as John Locke, Berkeley's was a distinctive attitude: he did not deny that a table existed, but the key concept of it was based on the perceiver's perspective and experience of it in the mind. In Three Dialogues (set in a ‘Platonic' garden), Hylas begins by challenging Philonous that he denied the existence of material substance. ‘What!' says Hylas. ‘Can anything be more fantastical, more repugnant to Common Sense, or a more manifest piece of Scepticism, than to believe there is no such thing as matter?' And Berkeley in the guise of Philonous replies: ‘Softly, good Hylas. What if it should prove that you, who hold there is, are, by virtue of that opinion, a greater sceptic, and maintain more paradoxes and repugnances to common Sense, than I who believe no such thing.' And the scene is set for the debate. Philonous emphasises (and persuades Hylas) that it is the mind's interpretation of what is perceived by the senses that really matters. However, Berkeley still argues for the traditional view of the Christian God as a creator - and, significantly, some eight years after the publication of Three Dialogues, took Holy Orders, and eventually became Bishop of Coyne. Presented here in dialogue form, Berkeley's most influential work proves an entertaining and stimulating work of philosophy as the two characters come to life in the spirited reading by Jonathan Keeble and Peter Kenny.
George Berkeley (Author), Jonathan Keeble, Peter Kenny (Narrator)
Audiobook
Three Dialogues Between Hylas and Philonous
Berkeley uses the Socratic mode of inquiry in Three Dialogues Between Hylas and Philonous to question fundamental beliefs about knowledge and reality. These dialogues are between Hylas (whose name is derived from the ancient Greek word for matter) and Philonous, whose name means "lover of mind". The new physical sciences developed in the 17th century supported the materialism proposed by Thomas Hobbes and several other philosophers. This worldview proclaimed that all of reality consists of nothing but matter in motion, thus promoting atheism and ethical skepticism. The implications for politics, ethics, and religion caused concern among leading intellectuals in the 18th century. Whatever the value of the positive claims presented in this work, Berkeley foreshadows the philosophical impact of 20th-century physics, which challenges the foundations of such materialism and calls for a better understanding of both the physical and the mental aspects of reality. © Agora Publications
George Berkeley (Author), Ray Childs (Narrator)
Audiobook
Three Dialogues between Hylas and Philonous
Berkeley uses the Socratic mode of inquiry in Three Dialogues between Hylas and Philonous to question fundamental beliefs about knowledge and reality. These dialogues are between Hylas (whose name is derived from the ancient Greek word for matter) and Philonous, whose name means "lover of mind." The new physical sciences developed in the seventeenth century supported the materialism proposed by Thomas Hobbes and several other philosophers. This worldview proclaimed that all of reality consists of nothing but matter in motion, thus promoting atheism and ethical skepticism. The implications for politics, ethics, and religion caused concern among leading intellectuals in the eighteenth century. Whatever the value of the positive claims presented in this work, Berkeley foreshadows the philosophical impact of twentieth century physics, which challenges the foundations of such materialism and calls for a better understanding of both the physical and the mental aspects of reality.
George Berkeley (Author), Albert A. Anderson (Narrator)
Audiobook
A Treatise Concerning the Principles of Human Knowledge
First published in 1710, George Berkeley's A Treatise Concerning the Principles of Human Knowledge is a major contribution to Empiricist philosophy that introduces the doctrine of immaterialism---the idea that the physical world does not exist outside the mind. **Please contact member services for additional documents**
George Berkeley (Author), Jonathan Cowley (Narrator)
Audiobook
©PTC International Ltd T/A LoveReading is registered in England. Company number: 10193437. VAT number: 270 4538 09. Registered address: 157 Shooters Hill, London, SE18 3HP.
Terms & Conditions | Privacy Policy | Disclaimer