George Berkeley Quotes
George Berkeley was an Anglo-Irish philosopher and Anglican bishop best known for his theory of immaterialism, sometimes called subjective idealism. His Principles of Human Knowledge and Three Dialogues argue that material objects exist only as perceptions in minds, summarized in the formula esse est percipi: to be is to be perceived. The quotes below are attributed to George Berkeley, organized by topic.
George Berkeley on Knowledge
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Attributed to George Berkeley:
“To be is to be perceived.”
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Attributed to George Berkeley:
“Few men think, yet all will have opinions.”
George Berkeley on Mind
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Attributed to George Berkeley:
“All the choir of heaven and furniture of the earth, in a word, all those bodies which compose the mighty frame of the world, have not any subsistence without a mind.”
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Attributed to George Berkeley:
“It is impossible that I should conceive in my thoughts any sensible thing or object distinct from the sensation or perception of it.”
George Berkeley on Politics
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Attributed to George Berkeley:
“Westward the course of empire takes its way.”
George Berkeley on Time
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Attributed to George Berkeley:
“Whenever I attempt to frame a simple idea of time, abstracted from the succession of ideas in my mind, I am lost.”
George Berkeley on Truth
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Attributed to George Berkeley:
“Truth is the cry of all, but the game of few.”
George Berkeley on Virtue
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Attributed to George Berkeley:
“He who says there is no such thing as an honest man, you may be sure is himself a knave.”