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A Treatise of Human Nature

Being an Attempt to Introduce the Experimental Method of Reasoning into Mor

Author David Hume
Introduction by Ernest C. Mossner
Paperback
$17.00 US
Penguin Adult HC/TR | Penguin Classics
On sale Feb 04, 1986 | 688 Pages | 9780140432442
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One of the most significant works of Western philosophy, Hume's Treatise was published in 1739-40, before he was thirty years old. A pinnacle of English empiricism, it is a comprehensive attempt to apply scientific methods of observation to a study of human nature, and a vigorous attack upon the principles of traditional metaphysical thought. With masterly eloquence, Hume denies the immortality of the soul and the reality of space; considers the manner in which we form concepts of identity, cause and effect; and speculates upon the nature of freedom, virtue and emotion. Opposed both to metaphysics and to rationalism, Hume's philosophy of informed scepticism sees man not as a religious creation, nor as a machine, but as a creature dominated by sentiment, passion and appetite.

For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.
A Treatise of Human Nature Introduction
Suggestions for Further Reading
A Note on the Text

A TREATISE OF HUMAN NATURE
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The Contents
Introduction
Book I: Of the Understanding
Book II: Of the Passions
Book III: Of Morals

David Hume was born in Edinburgh in 1711, and by his death in 1776 had become one of Britain's greatest men of letters, equal in stature to Voltaire and Rousseau and described by Boswell as 'the greatest Writer in Brittain'. As well as his Essays, which were republished and expanded throughout his life, he wrote A Treatise of Human Nature (later recast as Enquiries concerning Human Understanding and concerning the Principles of Morals) and a History of Britain. View titles by David Hume

About

One of the most significant works of Western philosophy, Hume's Treatise was published in 1739-40, before he was thirty years old. A pinnacle of English empiricism, it is a comprehensive attempt to apply scientific methods of observation to a study of human nature, and a vigorous attack upon the principles of traditional metaphysical thought. With masterly eloquence, Hume denies the immortality of the soul and the reality of space; considers the manner in which we form concepts of identity, cause and effect; and speculates upon the nature of freedom, virtue and emotion. Opposed both to metaphysics and to rationalism, Hume's philosophy of informed scepticism sees man not as a religious creation, nor as a machine, but as a creature dominated by sentiment, passion and appetite.

For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.

Table of Contents

A Treatise of Human Nature Introduction
Suggestions for Further Reading
A Note on the Text

A TREATISE OF HUMAN NATURE
Advertisement
The Contents
Introduction
Book I: Of the Understanding
Book II: Of the Passions
Book III: Of Morals

Author

David Hume was born in Edinburgh in 1711, and by his death in 1776 had become one of Britain's greatest men of letters, equal in stature to Voltaire and Rousseau and described by Boswell as 'the greatest Writer in Brittain'. As well as his Essays, which were republished and expanded throughout his life, he wrote A Treatise of Human Nature (later recast as Enquiries concerning Human Understanding and concerning the Principles of Morals) and a History of Britain. View titles by David Hume

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