John Locke
Locke shows up in the Preface, though not directly by name. Berkeley is not trying to be coy, however, as he makes quite clear that the “late deservedly esteemed philosopher” he is referring to is Locke by virtue of identifying by title Locke’s Essay on Human Understanding. It is Locke’s theories on knowledge and perception outlined in that volume which stimulates the publication of this counterargument and reply.
George Berkeley
The author himself is situated as a character in his own work by virtue of its first-person perspective. This point of view allows Berkeley to personalize the broader universalized theories he is arguing for or against. For instance, his response to the obvious argument that material things do not exist except if they are perceived is to admit that “things I see with my yes and touch my hands do exist, really exist, I make not the least question.”
The Reader
The reader is also drawn into this dynamic. When Berkeley internalizes his theoretical assertion to become its subject, he is usually at the same time situating the reader as the object of discourse through use of the pronoun, “you.” For instance, “Now I would desire that you would explain to me what meant by Matter’s supporting extension. Say you, I have no idea of Matter and therefore cannot explain it.”
God
The theoretical construct at work here is that everything that is perceived is merely a perception of an already existing idea. Naturally, the lingering question here is where did this existing idea originate if our perception is simply a replication of it? The answer is God. That which we perceive as existing is simply the perception of an idea instilled in us by God. So, ultimately, the entire work becomes Berkeley’s exercise in proving the existence of God.
