A Treatise of Human Nature

by David Hume

Overview

This unedited first edition of David Hume's "Treatise of Human Nature", with text reproduced actual size, allows scholars worldwide to read the exact same text as its earliest readers who included Alexander Pope, Bishop Butler, Adam Smith and Francis Hutcheson.

Hume scholar, David Raynor has written an introduction which sets the "Treatise" in its intellectual and historical context and details its early reception. It stands out from the crowd of editions of this work as being the only one that Hume saw printed in his lifetime, and its original scarcity should makes this a valuable reference for college and research libraries.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780879757434
Publisher:	Prometheus Books
Publication date:	06/01/1992
Series:	Great Books in Philosophy
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	344
Sales rank:	592,920
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.41(h) x 1.40(d)

About the Author

DAVID HUME was born in Edinburgh, Scotland, on April 26, 1711. He entered the University of Edinburgh at the age of twelve but left a few years later without having been conferred a degree. Being a lifelong skeptic, Hume was taken with the French philosophers whose work was exemplary of the movement. In 1734, he made an intellec­tual pilgrimage to La Fleche, France, the town where Descartes had been educated. Three years later, this change of scene culminated in his book titled A Treatise of Human Nature.

After returning to England in 1737, the remainder of Hume's life was spent writing on psychology, morality, and politics. During this time, his bid for appointment as professor of ethics in Edinburgh proved unsuccessful because of his views on religion. From that point on, he was to undertake short-term positions of employment with powerful and influential people in the English government. These appointments included some travel to the Continent. From 1767 to 1768 he served as undersecretary of state for the northern depart­ment. Hume then returned to Edinburgh, where he died eight years later on August 25, 1776.

David Hume's works include: A Treatise of Human Nature (1739), Treatise—Of the Understanding (1739), Of the Passions (1740), An Abstract of a Treatise of Human Nature (1740), Essays Moral and Political (1741-1742), An Enquiry Concerning Human Understand­ing (1758), An Enquiry Concerning the Principles of Morals (1751), Political Discourses (1751), History of England (1754-1762), Four Dissertations (1757), and Dialogues Concerning Natural Religion (published posthumously in 1779).

Table of Contents

PART 1: INTRODUCTORY MATERIALHow to Use this BookList of AbbreviationsEditor's IntroductionHume's Early years and EducationA Treatise of Human NatureBook 1: Of the UnderstandingBook 1 part 1: The Elements of the Mental WorldBook 1 Part 2: The Ideas of Space and TimeBook 1 Part 3: Knowledge, Probability, Belief, and CausationBook 1 Part 4: Forms of ScepticismBook 2: Of the passionsBook 2 Part 1: The Indirect Passions of Pride and HumilityBook 2 Part 2: The Indirect Passions of Love and HatredBook 2 part 3: The Direct Passions and the WillBook 3: Of MoralsBook 3 Part 1: The Source of Moral DistinctionsBook 3 Part 2: The Artificial VirtuesBook 3 Part 3: Natural Virtues and Natural AbilitiesThe Abstract and the Early Reception of the TreatiseSupplementary ReadingA Note on the Texts of this EditionPART 2: THE TEXTAdvertisementIntroductionBook 1: Of the UnderstandingPart 1: Of ideas, their origin, composition, connexion, abstraction, etc.Sect. 1: Of the origin of our ideasSect. 2: Division of the subjectSect. 3: Of the ideas of the memory and imaginationSect. 4: Of the connexion of association of ideasSect. 5. Of relationsSect. 6 Of modes and substancesSect. 7: Of abstract ideasPart 2: Of ideas of space and timeSect. 1: Of the infinite divisibility of our ideas of space and timeSect. 2: Of the infinite divisibility of space and timeSect. 3. Of the other qualities of our ideas of space and timeSect. 4. Objections answeredSect. 5: The same subject continuedSect. 6: Of the idea of existence and of external existencePart 3: of knowledge and probabilitySect. 1: Of knowledgeSect. 2. Of probability; and of the idea of cause and effectSect. 3: Why a cause is always necessarySect. 4: Of the component parts of our reasonings concerning cause and effectSect. 5: Of the impressions of the senses and memorySection. 6: Of the inference from the impression to the ideaSect. 7: Of the nature of the idea or beliefSect. 8: Of the causes of beliefSect. 9: Of the effects of other relations and other habitsSect 10. Of the influence of beliefSect. 11: Of the probability of chancesSect. 12: Of the probability of causesSect. 13: Of unphilosophical probabilitySect. 14: Of the idea of necessary connexionSect. 15: Rules by which to judge of causes and effectsSect. 16: Of the reason of animalsPart 4: Of the sceptical and other systems of philosophySect. 1: Of scepticism with regard to reasonSect. 2: Of scepticism with regard to the sensesSect. 3. Of the ancient philosophySect 4. Of the modern philosophySect. 5: Of the immateriality of the soulSect. 6: Of personal identitySect. 7: Conclusion of this bookBook 2: Of the PassionsPart 1: Of pride and humilitySect. 1: Division of the subjectSect. 2: Of pride and humility; their objects and causesSect. 3: Whence these objects and causes are derivedSect. 4: Of the relations of impressions and ideasSect. 5: Of the influence of these relations on pride and humilitySect. 6: Limitations of this systemSect. 7: Of vice and virtueSect. 8: Of beauty and deformitySect. 9: Of external advantages and disadvantagesSect. 10: Of property and richesSect. 11: Of the love of fameSect. 12: Of the pride and humility of animalsPart 2: Of love and hatredSect. 1: Of the objects and causes of love and hatredSect. 2: Experiments to confirm this systemSect. 3: Difficulties solvedSect. 4: Of the love of relationsSect. 5: Of our esteem for the rich and powerfulSect 6: Of benevolence and angerSect. 7: Of compassionSect. 8: Of malice and envySect. 9: Of the mixture of benevolence and anger with compassion and maliceSect. 10. Of respect and contemptSect. 11: Of the amorous passion, or love betwixt the sexesSect. 12: Of the love and hatred of animalsPart 3: Of the will and direct passionsSect. 1: Of liberty and necessitySect. 2: The same subject continuedSect. 3: Of the influencing motives of the willSect. 4: Of the causes of the violent passionsSect. 5: Of the effects of customSect. Of the influence of the imagination on passionsSect. 7: Of contiguity and distance in space and timeSect. 8: The same subject continuedSect. 9: Of the direct passionsSect. 10: Of curiosity, or the love of truthBook 3: Of MoralsAdvertisementPart 1: Of virtue and vice in generalSect. 1: Moral distinctions not derived from reasonSect. 2: Moral distinctions derived from a moral sensePart 2: Of justice and injusticeSect. 1: Justice, whether a natural or artificial virtue? Sect. 2: Of the origin of justice and propertySect. 3: Of the rules, which determine propertySect. 4: Of the transference of property by consentSect. 5: Of the obligation of promisesSect. 6: Some farther reflections concerning justice and injusticeSect. 7: Of the origin of governmentSect. 8: Of the source of allegianceSect. 9: Of the measures of allegianceSect. 10: Of the objects of allegianceSect. 11: Of the laws of nationsSect. 12: Of chastity and modestyPart 3: Of the other virtues and vicesSect. 1: Of the origin of the natural virtues and vicesSect. 2: Of greatness of mindSect. 3. Of goodness and benevolenceSect. 4: Of natural abilitiesSect. 5: Some farther reflections concerning the natural virtuesSect. 6: Conclusion of this bookAppendixAn Abstract of ... A Treatise of Human NaturePART 3 SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIALEditors' Annotations, Annotations to the Treatise, Annotations to the AbstractGlossaryReferencesIndex

Editorial Reviews

"This is the best edition around, especially for its glossary, index and the inclusion of the 'Abstract.'"—Professor Forrest Williams, University of Colorado

"This is the best edition available with an excellent index and notes!"—George Aigla, St. Johns College

From the Publisher