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David Hume Biography

David Hume (/hjuːm/; born David Home; 7 May 1711 NS (26 April 1711 OS) – 25 August 1776) was a Scottish philosopher, historian, economist, and essayist, who is best known today for his highly influential system of philosophical empiricism, skepticism, and naturalism. Hume's empiricist approach to philosophy places him with John Locke, Francis Bacon and Thomas Hobbes as a British Empiricist. Beginning with his A Treatise of Human Nature (1739), Hume strove to create a total naturalistic science of man that examined the psychological basis of human nature. Against philosophical rationalists, Hume held that passion rather than reason governs human behaviour. Hume argued against the existence of innate ideas, positing that all human knowledge is founded solely in experience; Hume thus held that genuine knowledge must either be directly traceable to objects perceived in experience, or result from abstract reasoning about relations between ideas which are derived from experience, calling the rest "nothing but sophistry and illusion", a dichotomy later given the name Hume's fork.

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David Hume Quotes

It were better, never to look beyond the present material world. By supposing it to contain the principle of its order within itself, we really assert it to be God; and the sooner we arrive at that divinity, the better.

Arrive, God, Order, Present, Principles, Supposing That

He sees such a desperate rapaciousness prevail; such a disregard to equity, such contempt of order, such stupid blindness to future consequences, as must immediately have the most tragical conclusion, and most terminate in destruction to the greater number, and in a total dissolution of society to the rest.

Stupid, Order, Numbers, Disregard, Consequences, Tragical

We find in the course of nature that though the effects be many, the principles from which they arise are commonly few and simple, and that it is the sign of an unskilled naturalist to have recourse to a different quality in order to explain every different operation.

Simple, Order, Words Of Wisdom, Effects, Arise

No testimony is sufficient to establish a miracle, unless the testimony be of such a kind, that its falsehood would be more miraculous than the fact which it endeavors to establish.

Establish, Falsehood, Miracle, Reality, Religious, Sufficient

And indeed nothing but the most determined scepticism, along with a great degree of indolence, can justify this aversion to metaphysics. For if truth be at all within the reach of human capacity, it is certain it must lie very deep and abstruse: and to hope we shall arrive at it without pains, while the greatest geniuses have failed with the utmost pains, must certainly be esteemed sufficiently vain and presumptuous. I pretend to no such advantage in the philosophy I am going to unfold, and would esteem it a strong presumption against it, were it so very easy and obvious.

Determined, Greatest, Hope, Lying, Pain, Strong

The greater part of mankind may be divided into two classes; that of shallow thinkers who fall short of the truth; and that of abstruse thinkers who go beyond it.

Abstruse, Class, Divided, Fall, Thinkers, Two

Among well bred people a mutual deference is affected, contempt for others is disguised; authority concealed; attention given to each in his turn; and an easy stream of conversation maintained without vehemence, without interruption, without eagerness for victory, and without any airs of superiority.

Air, Disguised, Given, People, Turn, Victory

I never asserted such an absurd thing as that things arise without a cause.

Absurd, Arise, Asserted, Causes, God, Thing

Everything in the world is purchased by labor.

Everything, Labor, Philosophical, Purchased, World

Truth is disputable, not human taste.

Disputable, Human, Humans, Taste, Truth Is

[priests are] the pretenders to power and dominion, and to a superior sanctity of character, distinct from virtue and good morals.

Atheism, Character, Distinct, Morals, Priests, Religion

It affords a violent prejudice against almost every science, that no prudent man, however sure of his principles, dares prophesy concerning any event, or foretell the remote consequences of things.

Against, Events, Men, Principles, Prophesy, Science

Absolute monarchy,. . . is the easiest death, the true Euthanasia of the BRITISH constitution.

Constitution, Death, Euthanasia

God is an ever-present spirit guiding all that happens to a wise and holy end.

Faith, Wise, Spirit, Holy, Happens

Nothing is more surprising than the easiness with which the many are governed by the few.

Easiness, Governed, Government, Philosophical, Philosophy, Surprising

In all ages of the world, priests have been enemies of liberty.

Age, Enemies, Enemy, Liberty, Priests, World

The mind is a kind of theater, where several perceptions successively make their appearence; pass, re-pass, glide away, and mingle in an infinite variety of postures and situations.

Appearence, Glide, Mind, Perception, Philosopher, Several

It is not reason which is the guide of life, but custom.

Custom, Guide, Guides, Life, Reason

Tis evident that all reasonings concerning matter of fact are founded on the relation of cause and effect, and that we can never infer the existence of one object from another, unless they be connected together, either mediately or immediately. . . Here is a billiard ball lying on the table, and another ball moving toward it with rapidity. They strike; and the ball which was formerly at rest now acquires a motion. This is as perfect an instance of the relation of cause and effect as any which we know, either by sensation or reflection.

Instance, Know, Lying, Moving, Reflection, Relation

Avarice, the spur of industry.

Avarice, Industry, Spur, Spurs

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