Alciphron or the Minute Philosopher

First American edition, from the fourth London edition. superb rebind in 1/2 calf and marbled boards, raised bands and gilt spine label for title, by Alan Grace of Surrey UK, text is somewhat browned as usual, else a pretty copy rare thus. The subtitle indicates the book is in seven dialogues xiii, 388, [2] pp. Alciphron is a Christian apologetic in answer to the 'minute philosophers' of Berkeley's day, who sought to minimize the the dignity of man. Berkeley is known as an advocate of subjective idealism (which he called immaterialism), which states that objects do not exist unless they are perceived. Perhaps his most well-known work is Three Dialogues between Hylas and Philonous, in which two characters representing himself and John Locke discuss various philosophical questions. Berkeley lends his name to both a city and a prestigious university in California. George Berkeley, also known as Bishop Berkeley (Bishop of Cloyne) , was an Anglo-Irish philosopher whose primary achievement was the advancement of a theory he called "immaterialism" (later referred to as "subjective idealism" by others). This theory denies the existence of material substance and instead contends that familiar objects like tables and chairs are only ideas in the minds of perceivers, and as a result cannot exist without being perceived. Berkeley is also known for his critique of abstraction, an important premise in his argument for immaterialism. In 1709, Berkeley published his first major work, "An Essay towards a New Theory of Vision," in which he discussed the limitations of human vision and advanced the theory that the proper objects of sight are not material objects, but light and colour. This foreshadowed his chief philosophical work "A Treatise Concerning the Principles of Human Knowledge" in 1710 which, after its poor reception, he rewrote in dialogue form and published under the title "Three Dialogues between Hylas and Philonous" in 1713. In this book, Berkeley's views were represented by Philonous (Greek: "lover of mind") , while Hylas (Greek: "matter") embodies the Irish thinker's opponents, in particular John Locke. Berkeley argued against Sir Isaac Newton's doctrine of absolute space, time and motion in "De Motu" (On Motion) , published 1721. His arguments were a precursor to the views of Mach and Einstein. In 1732, he published "Alciphron, a Christian Apologetic against the Free-Thinkers," and in 1734, he published "The Analyst, a Critique of the Foundations of Calculus," which was influential in the development of mathematics. His last major philosophical work, "Siris" (1744) , begins by advocating the medicinal use of tar water, and then continues to discuss a wide range of topics including science, philosophy, and theology. Interest in Berkeley's work increased after World War II, because he tackled many of the issues of paramount interest to philosophy in the 20th century such as the problems of perception, the difference between primary and secondary qualities, and the importance of language.…