Three Dialogues Between Hylas and Phi..., George Berkeley
Three Dialogues Between Hylas and Phi..., George Berkeley
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Three Dialogues Between Hylas and Philonous

Author: George Berkeley

Narrator: Ray Childs

Unabridged: 4 hr 36 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: AB Publishing

Published: 06/30/2025

Synopsis

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

About George Berkeley

George Berkeley (1685-1753), also known as Bishop Berkeley, was one of the three great British empiricist philosophers. Born near Thomastown, Ireland, he was educated at Kilkenny College and attended Trinity College in Dublin, where he remained as a tutor and lecturer after the competion of his Master's degree in 1707. In 1734, he was appointed Bishop of Cloyne in Ireland. He is best known for his doctrine of immaterialism, the idea that reality has no material existence outside of the mind. Berkeley's major works include An Essay towards a New Theory of Vision, A Treatise Concerning the Principles of Human Knowledge, and Three Dialogues between Hylas and Philonous.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Roy on June 02, 2016

--Hylas: I say, Philonous, can I talk to you about something? I have just read a bizarre, horrible book by George Berkeley, where he argues all sorts of nonsense. --Philonous: Is that so, Hylas? Pray, what was this book? --Hylas: Why, it was none other than Three Dialogues Between Hylas and Philonous.......more

Goodreads review by J. Aleksandr on August 26, 2022

I'd been looking forward to reading Berkeley for some time; can't tell whether my anticipation was misplaced, or Three Dialogues was simply the wrong book to start with. Berkeley gains very little by the conceit of dialogue; unlike the Socratics, which aren't even great at it, his speakers never deve......more

Goodreads review by Beauregard on April 08, 2017

Berkerley explains Being as thought not as becoming, nor appearance, nor ought. Sounds absurd until you realize the Copenhagen Interpretation (CI) appeals to an observer for the existence of reality in order to collapse the wave function. Applying Ockham's razor, by not assuming entities unnecessari......more

Goodreads review by Alina on May 16, 2019

These dialogues are delightful to read. Berkeley has a terrific sense of humor, and the progression of arguments are suspenseful and bewildering in the best possible way. I felt myself feeling such pity for Hylas being bombarded by Philonous, and for his not being equipped by arguments such as Sella......more

Goodreads review by David on December 06, 2009

Beautifully written. Berkeley believed that everything is in the mind. The reason things still exist in a room when you have left it is because God keeps it there in His mind as He keeps you in His mind, hence overcoming the problem of continuity without sense perception. A very eloquent argument.......more

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