George Berkeley: From Empiricism to Idealism by Leonard Peikoff, part 38 of 50

History of Philosophy by Leonard Peikoff - Lesson 38 of 50

Leonard Peikoff discusses the philosophy of George Berkeley — Irish philosopher and Bishop of Cloyne. Berkeley accepted the basic premises of John Locke, but used them to demonstrate that there is no such thing as a physical world, arguing that nothing exists but minds and their experiences.

SUBSCRIBE TO NEW IDEAL, ARI'S ONLINE PUBLICATION

SUBSCRIBE TO ARI’S YOUTUBE CHANNEL

SUPPORT THE AYN RAND INSTITUTE WITH A DONATION

EXPLORE ARI

FOLLOW ARI ON TWITTER

LIKE ARI ON FACEBOOK

[satwindersingh]

Very well attempted to explain rather difficult concepts. Should get many more hits.

[numericalcode]

Is the Simulation hypothesis Berkeleyan?

[Primitarian]

Berkeley refuted: 1) If a thing cannot exist unless it is perceived or perceiving, the act of perception itself could not exist because it is only the means by which a thing is perceived or perceives, not the thing itself, and thus the perception itself would be in need of being perceived or of causing the perceiving. 2) If God exists merely by virtue of His perceiving as opposed to His being perceived, a human mind could exist on its own by the same token, i.e., by perceiving as opposed to being perceived. But if that is so, every human mind could exist without the need of being perceived by the divine perceiver, a conclusion that hardly seems in line with the Christian orthodoxy Berkeley advocated.

[Primitarian]

Who perceives God remains a problem for Berkeley because if God exists merely by virtue of His perceiving as opposed to His being perceived (as Prof Piekoff maintains in the Q&A), why could not a human mind exist by the same token, i.e., by perceiving as opposed to being perceived? But if that is so, every human mind may exist without the need for being perceived by the divine perceiver, a conclusion I doubt the good bishop would concede.

[zakmatew]

Interesting how modern physics seems to confirm the absence of matter idea.

[stefanotittarelli]

This guy is good, very clear, but I cannot bear his canadian - american accent....God save the Queen's english! Besides his latin pronunciation, meaning his saying "perkipi", is american, not latin!