The Cambridge Companion to Berkeley (Cambridge Companions to Philosophy)

George Berkeley is one of the greatest and most influential modern philosophers. In defending the immaterialism for which he is most famous, he redirected modern thinking about the nature of objectivity and the mind's capacity to come to terms with it. Along the way, he made striking and influential proposals concerning the psychology of the senses, the workings of language, the aims of science, and the scope of mathematics. In this Companion volume a team of distinguished authors not only examines Berkeley's achievements but also his neglected contributions to moral and political philosophy, his writings on economics and development, and his defense of religious commitment and religious life. The volume places Berkeley's achievements in the context of the many social and intellectual traditions - philosophical, scientific, ethical, and religious - to which he fashioned a distinctive response. Berkeley's Life And Works / David Berman -- Was Berkeley An Empiricist Or A Rationalist? / Michael Ayers -- Berkeley's Notebooks / Robert Mckim -- Berkeley's New Theory Of Vision And Its Reception / Margaret Atherton -- Berkeley And The Doctrine Of Signs / Kenneth P. Winkler -- Berkeley's Argument For Immaterialism / Anthony Grayling -- Berkeley On Minds And Agency / Phillip D. Cummins -- Berkeley's Natural Philosophy And Philosophy Of Science / Lisa Downing -- Berkeley's Philosophy Of Mathematics / Douglas M. Jesseph -- Berkeley's Moral And Political Philosophy / Stephen Darwall -- Berkeley's Economic Writings / Patrick Kelly -- Berkeley On Religion / Stephen R. L. Clark -- Appendix: Berkeley's Verses On America. Edited By Kenneth P. Winkler. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 407-434) And Indexes. In defending the immaterialism for which he is most famous, George Berkeley, one of the most influential modern philosophers, redirected modern thinking about the nature of objectivity and the mind's capacity to come to terms with it. Along the way, he made striking and influential proposals concerning the psychology of the senses, workings of language, aims of science, and scope of mathematics. A team of distinguished contributors not only examines Berkeley's achievements in this Companion, but also his neglected contributions to moral and political philosophy, writings on economics and development, and defense of religious commitment and religious life. In defending immaterialism, George Berkeley redirected modern thinking about the nature of objectivity and the mind's capacity to come to terms with it. This Companion examines Berkeley's achievements and contributions to moral and political philosophy, his writings on economics and development, and his defense of religious commitment and life.