Sylabus
The central themes of the course will include the following:
1. The views of Descartes, Hobbes, Malebranche, Leibniz, and Locke on spirit and self-knowledge.
2. Why Berkeley thinks that we have no idea of spirit.
3. The positive account of self-knowledge in Berkeley's early philosophy.
4. Berkeley's opposition to abstraction and his explanation of general thought.
5. The theory of notions as an account of fundamental intellectual concepts.
6. Was Berkeley ever an empiricist?
7. Berkeley's developing view about the notion of divine spirit.
8. The neo-Platonist theory of spirit in Siris. Primary literature: Berkeley, Collected Works in either the Luce and Jessop or Fraser editions. We will pay particular attention to the A Treatise on the Principles of Human Knowledge, De motu and Siris. Secondary literature: Talia Mae Bettcher, Berkeley's Philosophy of Spirit, 2007 John Russell Roberts, A Metaphysics for the Mob, 2007 Kennetth Winkler, Berkeley: An Interpretation, 1989
Anotace
Although spirit or mind is the most fundamental entity in Berkeley’s philosophy, most readers take more interest in his views about matter, and in his arguments against material substance. The aim of this course is to concentrate on Berkeley's view of the nature of spirit and the role it plays in his system. We will pay particular attention to Berkeley’s claim that spirit cannot be represented or pictured by an idea, and we will explore the active nature of spirit in conceptual thinking, mathematics, ethics and in other areas of human cognition. Also, again in contrast to prevailing interpretations, we will be interested in the development of Berkeley’s views, including the final neo-Platonist phase of his thought in Siris.
This is a course suitable for all students embarked on master's and bachelor's programmes in philosophy. Non-specialists are also welcome, but should be aware that the course may assume some basic knowledge of early-modern philosophy and that they will need to consult with the teacher about the written assignment.