A Treatise Concerning the Principles of Human Knowledge

work by Berkeley

Written by

The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Last updated

July 14, 2026

Quick Summary

In A Treatise Concerning the Principles of Human Knowledge, George Berkeley argues that reality consists solely of ideas and spirits (minds or souls). He posits that physical objects like tables and chairs are merely collections of sensible ideas. According to his doctrine, esse est percipi—"to be is to be perceived". This means that objects exist only when they are being perceived by a mind. If an object is not perceived by a human, Berkeley suggests it is continuously perceived by God, thus ensuring its existence. Berkeley's philosophy challenges the notion of matter existing independently of the mind, asserting that qualities like extension and impenetrability are also ideas that exist only in the mind.12

Summary created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.

3 Britannica Sources

Ask Britannica AI about this topic

Britannica doesn't have a full article on this topic, so we've curated a list of our relevant coverage.

George Berkeley
Period of his major works
” In his A Treatise Concerning the Principles of Human Knowledge, Part I (1710), he brought all objects of sense, including tangibles, within the mind; he rejected material substance, material causes, and abstract general ideas; he affirmed spiritual substance; and he answered many objections to his theory and…
Read More
” In his A Treatise Concerning the Principles of Human Knowledge, Part I (1710), he brought all objects of sense, including tangibles, within the mind; he rejected material substance, material causes, and abstract general ideas; he affirmed spiritual substance; and he answered many objections to his theory and…
Read More

English literature
Shaftesbury and others
His Treatise Concerning the Principles of Human Knowledge (1710) and Three Dialogues Between Hylas and Philonous (1713) continued the 17th-century debates about the nature of human perception, to which René Descartes and John Locke had contributed. The extreme lucidity and elegance of his style contrast markedly…
Read More
His Treatise Concerning the Principles of Human Knowledge (1710) and Three Dialogues Between Hylas and Philonous (1713) continued the 17th-century debates about the nature of human perception, to which René Descartes and John Locke had contributed. The extreme lucidity and elegance of his style contrast markedly…
Read More

$optical illusion: refraction of light$
epistemology
George Berkeley
In his major work, A Treatise Concerning the Principles of Human Knowledge (1710), Berkeley asserted that nothing exists except ideas and spirits (minds or souls). He distinguished three kinds of ideas: those that come from sense experience correspond to Locke’s simple ideas of perception; those that come from “attending to…
Read More
In his major work, A Treatise Concerning the Principles of Human Knowledge (1710), Berkeley asserted that nothing exists except ideas and spirits (minds or souls). He distinguished three kinds of ideas: those that come from sense experience correspond to Locke’s simple ideas of perception; those that come from “attending to…
Read More