WeRead Powered by ReaderPub
An Essay Towards a New Theory of Vision cover

An Essay Towards a New Theory of Vision

By George Berkeley
Open in WeRead

Explore more books like this:

Philosophy & Ethics

About This Book

The essay argues that sight does not directly convey distance, magnitude, or external location; instead the mind learns to associate visual sensations with tactile and bodily experiences. It challenges optical accounts that locate distance in lines, angles, or divergent rays, and distinguishes distinct from confused vision by the meeting of refracted rays on the retina. Through thought experiments and engagement with contemporaneous optical theories the author explains how eye movements, image confusion, and experience jointly produce judgments of distance and apparent size, and applies the view to puzzles about reflection, refraction, and perceptual illusions.

About the Author

Berkeley, George portrait

George Berkeley

George Berkeley (1685-1753) was an Irish philosopher and bishop known for his contributions to the development of idealism and empiricism. His most notable work, "A Treatise Concerning the Principles of Human Knowledge," challenges the materialist view of reality, proposing that objects only exist as perceptions in the mind. Berkeley also explored the nature of vision in "An Essay Towards a New Theory of Vision," where he examined how we perceive distance and depth. His philosophical dialogues, particularly "Three Dialogues Between Hylas and Philonous," engage with skepticism and atheism, showcasing his commitment to the interplay between faith and reason. Berkeley's ideas have significantly influenced modern philosophy and continue to be studied for their innovative approach to perception and existence.

More Books by This Author

5 picks
A Proposal for the Better Supplying of Churches in Our Foreign Plantations, and for Converting the Savage Americans to Christianity, By a College to Be Erected in the Summer Islands, Otherwise Called the Isles of Bermuda cover A Proposal for the Better Supplying of Churches in Our Foreign Plantations, and for Converting the Savage Americans to Christianity, By a College to Be Erected in the Summer Islands, Otherwise Called the Isles of Bermuda by George Berkeley A Treatise Concerning the Principles of Human Knowledge cover A Treatise Concerning the Principles of Human Knowledge by George Berkeley The Querist / Containing Several Queries Proposed to the Consideration of the Public cover The Querist / Containing Several Queries Proposed to the Consideration of the Public by George Berkeley The Works of George Berkeley. Vol. 1 of 4: Philosophical Works, 1705-21 cover The Works of George Berkeley. Vol. 1 of 4: Philosophical Works, 1705-21 by George Berkeley Three Dialogues Between Hylas and Philonous in Opposition to Sceptics and Atheists cover Three Dialogues Between Hylas and Philonous in Opposition to Sceptics and Atheists by George Berkeley

You May Also Like

6 picks
Percy Bysshe Shelley as a Philosopher and Reformer cover Percy Bysshe Shelley as a Philosopher and Reformer by Charles Sotheran Two old faiths cover Two old faiths by J. Murray Mitchell Supernatural Religion, Vol. 3 (of 3) / An Inquiry into the Reality of Divine Revelation cover Supernatural Religion, Vol. 3 (of 3) / An Inquiry into the Reality of Divine Revelation by Walter Richard Cassels Usury / A Scriptural, Ethical and Economic View cover Usury / A Scriptural, Ethical and Economic View by Calvin Elliott Moral Philosophy: Ethics, Deontology and Natural Law cover Moral Philosophy: Ethics, Deontology and Natural Law by Joseph Rickaby The Kernel and the Husk: Letters on Spiritual Christianity cover The Kernel and the Husk: Letters on Spiritual Christianity by Edwin Abbott Abbott