Three Dialogues Between Hylas and Philonous
Assigned by 1 of the 9 reading lists, catalogue entry only
- Written
- 1713
- Language
- English
- Length
- Short · 100 ppunder 120 pages
- Difficulty
- Moderate2 of 5 for a first-year reader
We recommendPrinciples of Human Knowledge and Three DialoguesOxford University PressOxford World's Classics, which prints the Dialogues with the treatise they were written to popularise.
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Berkeley restates the argument of the Principles as a conversation over three mornings. Hylas, who believes in matter, is led by Philonous to admit that heat, taste, sound and colour exist only in the perceiver, and then that extension, motion and solidity are in no better case. If all sensible qualities are ideas, the material substance supposed to hold them is an empty phrase. Philonous then argues that his own position, not Hylas's, is the one that saves common sense and defeats scepticism, and that the order of our ideas points to God as their author.
No reading guide yet
The catalogue entry above is complete: the dates, the form, the themes and every program that assigns Three Dialogues Between Hylas and Philonous are verified against each program's published list.
What is missing is the part that takes real work: the summary, the key passages, and a recommended translation. The edition named below is the one most programs assign, so the buy links are useful already.
