David Hume 1711 – 1776
David Hume was a Scottish philosopher, historian, and economist of the Scottish Enlightenment. In A Treatise of Human Nature and the Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding he advanced a thoroughgoing empiricism and skepticism about causation, induction, and the self. He argued that reason is the slave of the passions and developed a sentimentalist account of morality. His critique of the design argument and miracles shaped modern philosophy of religion. His work later prompted Kant, by his own account, to awaken from his dogmatic slumber.
Key facts
- Nationality
- Scottish
- Era
- Modern
- Movements
- Empiricism, Scottish Enlightenment
Selected quotes
-
Attributed to David Hume:
“Reason is, and ought only to be the slave of the passions.”
-
Attributed to David Hume:
“Custom, then, is the great guide of human life.”
-
Attributed to David Hume:
“A wise man proportions his belief to the evidence.”
-
Attributed to David Hume:
“Beauty in things exists in the mind which contemplates them.”
-
Attributed to David Hume:
“Generally speaking, the errors in religion are dangerous; those in philosophy only ridiculous.”
Quotes that are not actually from David Hume
These lines are widely circulated as David Hume, but they do not appear in David Hume's works. Each entry below identifies the actual source.
-
“Truth springs from argument amongst friends.”
This line is sometimes attributed to Hume but has not been located in his Treatise, Enquiries, Essays, or surviving correspondence. The actual source has not been identified.