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Berkeley's Criticisms of Shaftesbury and Hutcheson

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 November 2020

Samuel C. Rickless
Samuel C. Rickless*
Affiliation:
University of California San Diego
*
srickless@ucsd.edu
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Abstract

In this paper, I attempt to clarify the nature and purpose of Berkeley's criticisms of Shaftesbury's and Hutcheson's ethical systems in the third chapter of Alciphron, explaining the extent to which those criticisms rely on the truth of idealism and considering whether Berkeley or his philosophical opponents have the better of the arguments. In the end, I conclude that some of Berkeley's criticisms are based on confusion and misunderstanding, others are likely contradicted by the empirical evidence, and yet others are unconvincing. At the same time, the criticisms reveal that Berkeley's metaphysical and ethical views are, perhaps surprisingly, significantly intertwined.

Type
Papers
Information
Royal Institute of Philosophy Supplements , Volume 88: Irish Philosophy in the Age of Berkeley , October 2020 , pp. 97 - 119
Copyright
Copyright © The Royal Institute of Philosophy and the contributors 2020

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