Chapter 21: Hume
David Hume (1711-1776)
One of the most important empiricists. Grew up in Scotland during the Age of Enlightenment.
- Human beings create "complex ideas." We create imaginary objects by putting together characteristics of unrelated objects.
- i.e. a Pegasus, a Unicorn, etc.
- Man has two different types of perception: impression and ideas.
- Impressions are what you feel immdeiately.
- Ideas are what you remember later on about that impression.
- God can't be proved, nor disproved. => Agnostic
- We get used to the "unbreakable laws of nature," habits, routines.
- i.e. we always expect a rock to fall, not float.
- The "law of causation." Everything that happens has a cause; something made it happen. Cause and Effect!
- We don't expect anything new from the world. We learn everything and everything becomes a habit.
Hume Links