On the Nature of Ideas and Human Understanding: Comparing Locke and Berkeley Anonymous College

The turn of the 17th century prompted a rolling new age of skepticism, in which individuals began to question unequivocal prior beliefs regarding the validity of the Catholic Church, and even the nature of reality. In response to an age echoing with voices of doubt, two primary schools of thought arose. On one hand, Rene Descartes’ Meditations pioneered the inception of rationalism, which arose in an attempt to establish reason and rationale as the most reliable source of knowledge. This school of thought aligned with the likes of Plato and emphasizes the existence of priori, or innate knowledge. On the contrary, John Locke argues against the rationalist focus on innate ideas; claiming instead that it is our senses and experiences that provide us with the most reliable basis for knowledge. Locke does this through his work, An Essay Concerning Human Understanding, a series of arguments wherein he attempts to ascertain the origin and nature of abstract ideas by outlining the processes by which we understand ideas and reality. As with many philosophers, various criticisms arose regarding Locke’s explanation of ideas and the nature of reality. Among these critics, Berkeley, another empiricist, uses Locke’s own principles to support...