ENGLISH

An Enquiry concerning Human Understanding (Oxford World's Classics)

By David Hume , Peter Millican

Book information

Year
2007
ISBN
0199211582, 9781435618022, 9780199211586
Open Library ID
OL22754835M
Language
english
Format
PDF
Filesize
1 MB (1335462 bytes)
Edition
First edition.
Pages
272\305
Topic
Education
Time added
2011-06-04 13:46:07

Description

David Hume's Enquiry concerning Human Understanding is the definitive statement of the greatest philosopher in the English language. His arguments in support of reasoning from experience, and against the "sophistry and illusion"of religiously inspired philosophical fantasies, caused controversy in the eighteenth century and are strikingly relevant today, when faith and science continue to clash. The Enquiry considers the origin and processes of human thought, reaching the stark conclusion that we can have no ultimate understanding of the physical world, or indeed our own minds. In either sphere we must depend on instinctive learning from experience, recognizing our animal nature and the limits of reason. Hume's calm and open-minded skepticism thus aims to provide a new basis for science, liberating us from the "superstition" of false metaphysics and religion. His Enquiry remains one of the best introductions to the study of philosophy, and his edition places it in its historical and philosophical context.

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