The Clarendon Edition of the Works of David Hume: An Enquiry concerning Human Understanding

Tom Beauchamp presents the definitive scholarly edition of two famous works by David Hume, both originally published in 1757. In A Dissertation on the Passions Hume sets out his original view of the nature and central role of passion and emotion. The Natural History of Religion is a landmark work in the study of religion as a natural phenomenon. Copyright Preface Contents Abbreviations and Conventions Introduction: A History of the Enquiry concerning Human Understanding 1. From the Treatise to the First Enquiry Disappointment with the Treatise The Break from the Treatise The Attraction of the Essay Style Adversity in 1745 Drafting the Manuscript From 1746 to 1748 Changes of Title 2. The Intellectual Background The Ideal of a Science of Human Nature Ideas and their Association Probability, Causation, Necessity, and Liberty Revealed and Natural Religion Scepticism 3. A History of the Editions The First Edition in 1748 The Second Edition in 1750 The Earliest Collected Editions: 1753–1756 The Collected Editions from 1758 to 1770 The 1772 Copytext and Final 1777 Changes Printer and Booksellers 4. A Bibliographical Schema of the Editions French Translations in Hume’s Lifetime German Translations in Hume’s Lifetime 5. The Remains of the Treatise, Abstract, and Letter 6. Reception in the 1750s Kames’s Essays (1751) Stewart’s ‘Remarks on the Laws of Motion’ (1754) Manning’s Inquiry on Ratiocination (circa 1754) Leland’s Deistical Writers (1754–1757) Price’s Review of the Principal Questions (1758) 7. Reception of the Essay on Miracles Skelton’s Ophiomaches: or, Deism Revealed (1749) Adams’s Essay on Hume’s Essay (1752) Ellys’s Remarks (1752) Admonitions from the Dead (1754) Campbell’s Dissertation on Miracles (1762) Price’s Four Dissertations (1767) Priestley’s Institutes (1772–1774) 8. Reception in the 1760s and 1770s Reid’s Inquiry (1764) Balfour’s Philosophical Essays (1768) Beattie’s Essay (1770) Five Letters to the Weekly Magazine (1771) Oswald’s Appeal to Common Sense (1766–1772) Priestley’s Institutes (1772–1774) and Examination (1774) Conclusion A Note on the Text Advertisement An Enquiry concerning Human Understanding 1. Of the Different Species of Philosophy 2. Of the Origin of Ideas 3. Of the Association of Ideas 4. Sceptical Doubts concerning the Operations of the Understanding 5. Sceptical Solution of these Doubts 6. Of Probability 7. Of the Idea of Necessary Connexion 8. Of Liberty and Necessity 9. Of the Reason of Animals 10. Of Miracles 11. Of a Particular Providence and of a Future State 12. Of the Academical or Sceptical Philosophy Editor’s Annotations Glossary Editorial Appendix: Emendations and Substantive Variants Biographical Appendix Reference List Catalogue of Hume’s References Hume’s Index Editor’s Index "Originally written as a collection of essays centred on human understanding and the principles of human nature, the first Enquiry is in some respects the quintessential Enlightenment book. It incorporates a confidence in science, a daring attempt at new discoveries about the human mind, an opposition to superstition and fanaticism, an emphasis on human nature, a restrained scepticism about traditional views of knowledge and belief, and a mood of reform and critique. Hume regarded the bulk of ancient and modern philosophers as having an inflated, even pretentious, faith in the powers of human reason. Many of these philosophers thought that, using reason, they could establish the existence and nature of God, identify the most basic entities that comprise the universe, and grasp eternal truths of morality. Every section of the Enquiry carries the message that these philosophers are overly confident. Hume's theses about the limitations of human understanding form the cement of his work in this book and the reason for its title." "The authoritative version of the text presented here is based upon the 1772 edition that was seen through the press by Hume himself. The editor's introduction sets the work in its historical context, and a large body of annotations provide information about Hume's sources, allusions, citations, and meanings. A biographical appendix identifies the many people mentioned by Hume. Separate and extensive bibliographies list the works cited by Hume and by the editor. Hume's original index is reproduced, together with a new general index by the editor. An editorial appendix establishes the substantive variants in all the editions of the work and explains editorial emendations to the text."--BOOK JACKET

extracted From: Enquiries Concerning The Human Understanding, And Concerning The Principles Of Morals, By David Hume. Reprinted From The Posthumous Edition Of 1777, And Edited With Introduction, Comparative Tables Of Contents, And Analytical Index By L.a. Selby-bigge, M.a., Late Fellow Of University College, Oxford.

1 MORAL philosophy, or the science of human nature, may be treated after two different manners; each of which has its peculiar merit, and may contribute to the entertainment, instruction, and reformation of mankind. David Hume (1711-1776) is thought to be one of the greatest philosophers. In this text, Hume gives an accessible presentation of strikingly original and challenging views concerning human understanding