David Hume (1711-1776) was a skeptical philosopher -- that is, he questioned whether we can know anything with absolute certainty, and if so what the path to that knowledge is. His conclusion was that we can't rely on reason alone to know something, but that we have to rely on and interpret our experience. In this selection from one of his major works, An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding, Hume looks carefully at the difference between fiction and belief.
Read this selection very thoroughly and carefully two or three times, then . . .
[150-200 words]
1) Look up every reference to the term "belief" [there are 12 of them; you don't
have to indicate what he is saying in each use of the term as in previous assignments].
How is "belief" different from "fiction"? What role does
"sentiment" [or feeling] play in forming our beliefs?
2) Do you agree with Hume about the difference between fiction and belief? About relation of belief and sentiment? If he's right, what does this say about our ability to know the truth -- especially about the political questions we are addressing in this course?
[100-150 words]
3) Choose 2-3 sentences in this reading that you thought were especially interesting or
perplexing. In your own words, what is Hume saying here and why is it important?
A Couple of Notes:
If you'd like help understanding Hume and this reading a bit more, go to the Spark Notes
page on Hume.