David Hume: Empiricism, Skepticism, and Morality

Knowledge and Empiricism

Hume, taking empiricism to its ultimate consequences, refused to formulate hypotheses, arguing that the passage from particular experience to general law cannot be rationally justified. He sought to discover psychological laws and base knowledge on them, setting real limits to what we can know. Hume stressed that our ideas are merely representations of reality, and the laws of nature are never certain. He identified two elements of consciousness: impressions (perceptions) and ideas (representations of impressions in the mind). Ideas derive from impressions and are weaker, less vivid versions of them. Ideas can be simple or complex, but there are no innate or abstract ideas. An idea is true if it corresponds to a sensory experience, which is the origin and limit of knowledge. Ideas are associated according to laws of resemblance, contiguity, and causality.

Hume distinguished two modes of knowledge: relations between ideas (logic and mathematics) and matters of fact (empirical sciences).

Critique of Causation and Metaphysics

Hume argued that our knowledge is limited to our impressions, so there can be no knowledge of future events. Just because two phenomena have always occurred contiguously does not mean they have a necessary causal relationship. We infer causality due to habit, but it is a useful fiction, not a demonstrable truth.

Hume's critique of metaphysics led him to label it an illusion. He questioned the traditional Cartesian notion of substance. He considered the material substance a supposition and the infinite substance (God) a useless hypothesis, arguing that we cannot verify God's existence. Regarding the thinking substance (self), Hume claimed we have no permanent impressions; if the self were an impression, it would be permanent. Instead, the self is a bundle of perceptions. Hume suggested that memory allows us to recognize the connections between these impressions.

These findings lead to a form of skepticism, but Hume accepted belief as a practical guide to life.

Philosophical and Historical Context

The influence of science is evident in the Enlightenment's abandonment of magical thinking in favor of reason. Mathematical and experimental sciences served as models for both rationalism and empiricism. Key empiricists included Locke, Berkeley, Hume, Francis Bacon, and Thomas Hobbes. Hume lived during the time of the Encyclopedists: Montesquieu, Diderot, Voltaire, and Rousseau. These philosophers challenged revealed religion and the authority of the Church and the divine right of kings.

The historical-sociocultural context included the proclamations of human rights in the American Declaration of Independence and the French Revolution. Changing economic structures and production techniques marked the Industrial Revolution, with inventions like the steam engine and the power loom. In art, the sensual and refined Rococo contrasted with the rational and moralistic Neoclassicism adopted by the bourgeoisie.

Morality, Religion, and Politics

Hume argued that moral judgments are not based on reason but on the disinterested feeling of sympathy (empathy). Morality rests on feelings of approval or disapproval, making it emotivist and utilitarian. Our motivations are driven by feelings, not reason. Habit and education shape conscience.

Religion was a crucial topic during the Enlightenment. Hume believed in God's existence but argued that rational justification for religion is impossible (he did not accept Deism). Religious ideas arise from hopes, uncertainties, and fears. He traced the evolution of religion from polytheism to monotheism, adopting a skeptical and agnostic stance.

Hume's political philosophy was utilitarian. He considered the family the only natural association. Utility is the basis for obedience, and individual welfare and happiness are linked to collective well-being.