Subjective Idealism

by: Braedon Betzner

According to the Encyclopedia Britannica, Berkeley believed that "nothing exist except minds and spirits and their perceptions or ideas" (subjective). He suggested that if an idea is not perceived by a mind; then the idea does not exist. I beg to differ, if no one perceives a thing or idea it does not mean it does not exist. It can still exist without an individual perceiving it. For instance, the idea if God truly exists or not. Even if an individual does not perceive that he exists, it can still be proven that the idea of God does exist by others. It can be shown by the unexplained miracles and multiple chances given to undeserving people. Lisa Downing states that Berkeley argues for the existence of God by stating, "Ideas which depend on our own finite human wills are not (constituents of) real things."
In order for an idea to be perceived, it must be perceived by an individual's sensations. What if an individual is lacking one or more senses to perceive an idea? For example, if someone was blind and deaf since birth and could not see or hear. Therefore, they cannot perceive an idea visually or by hearing it. If there were a door in the blind/deaf individual's way, could he perceive it? If he could not see it in his way or hear it open or close, would he perceive it? As mentioned in the Encyclopedia Britannica, "reality of the outside world is contingent of a knower" (subjective). Therefore, if the blind/deaf individual cannot see or hear the door, then the idea of the door does not exist in his reality. However, that does not mean it does not exist in another individual's reality. If I see the situation of the blind/deaf man about to run into the door, I would be aware of the situation with my senses. I would be able to see that he was about to hit the door and I would be able to warn the individual about the door. So just because someone cannot perceive an idea does not mean it does not exist. It just may not exist solely in their reality but to others it may exist.
In regards to Berkeley's Esse Est Percipi proposition, I still do not think it is valid. If we do not perceive an idea than someone else, might perceive it for us and make it exist.

Downing, Lisa. "George Berkeley." Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. 10 Sep.2004. Stanford University. 07 Aug. 2008.
"Subjective Idealism." Encyclopedia Britannica. 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online. 06 Aug. 2008Subjective-idealism>.