Three Dialogues Between Hylas and Philonous by George Berkeley

Aside from the actual content, the book offers a glimpse into that period of the Western philosophical mind (as pitiable as it was). The only way this dialog works is as a parody of religious dogma and its blind dismissal of reality, but parody was sadly not the intent. London: Everymans Li brary, 1975.185-186,194 (The Third Dialogue). He hoped the use of the dialogue format would win a more favorable hearing, but unfortunately for Berkeley, the response was every bit as scathing as the reception of his previous work. I would say 'curiously', but I know why he did it - to spinelessly (OK, out of practicality) pander to the horrendous religious powers that were, which was his initial agenda, though he failed miserably. Berkeley published the Dialogues because of the unenthusiastic reception of his Principles of Human Knowledge in 1710.

Berkeley used the characters of Philonous and Hylas to represent himself and John Locke. After being thoroughly and clearly beaten, he nevertheless declared himself the winner by having his victorious nemesis acquiesce to the preposterous arguments offered. Berkeley wrote A Treatise Concerning the Principles of Human Knowledge (1710) and Three Dialogues between Hylas and Philonous (1713). Berkeley breaks his book up into three separate sections, or dialogues. His agenda is clear (that matter does not exist, only the spirit of God), but he is repeatedly beaten badly by his imaginary nemesis, offering only feeble attempts to parry the thrusts with double-talk, contradictions, blind dogmatic 'is' claims, and supreme dances of twisted sophistry. The result of this effort, Three Dialogues Between Hylas and Philonous, was published in 1713 while Berkeley was living in London. This must be the only time in philosophical history that a thinker lost to himself, and badly. The Thinker Who Lost the Argument with Himself

Three Dialogues Between Hylas and Philonous by George Berkeley