Document Type : Research Paper

Authors

• seyyed mohammad hakak
• zahra Esmaeli

Abstract

Abstract
In history of philosophy, the universals are considered to be one of the most important and controversial problems. A group of thinkers has highlighted   to be mark of difference between human and animal while some others have degraded it to a mere name. Importance of this issue was different in various ages but in medieval ages it enjoyed more importance. Locke and then Berkley, who considered to be the heir of medieval philosophy, inevitably discussed it and propounded new theories. This article is an attempt to discuss these theories.  At first, Locke's theory and its problem were treated and then Berkley's theory was explored with reference to its strong and weak points. Then a middle way is propounded to describe the universals as viewed by both philosophers including their strong points.

Keywords

• general
• Locke
• Berkeley
• Realism
• pragmatism name
• nominalism