Introduction to Hume: An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding

An introduction to the thought of David Hume through An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding. The text is a more accessible interpretation of his earlier work, a Treatise of Human Nature (volume one). Hume was the third of the British Empiricists, taking the thought of Locke and Berkley to its limits and attempting a scientific theory of mind. He was both a naturalist and a skeptic, laying out what has become known as the problem of induction. He also woke Kant from his ‘dogmatic slumber'.
Then & Now is FAN-FUNDED! Support me on Patreon and pledge as little as $1 per video: patreon.com/user?u=3517018
Or send me a one-off tip of any amount and help me make more videos:
www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=JJ76W4CZ2A8J2
Buy on Amazon through this link to support the channel:
amzn.to/2ykJe6L
Follow me on:
Facebook: thethenandnow
Instagram: thethenandnow
Twitter: lewlewwaller
Music by August Aghast:
Soundcloud: soundcloud.com/augustaghast
Twitter: augustaghast
Credits:
Stock footage provided by Videvo, downloaded from www.videvo.net
Sources:
Hume, David, An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding
Ayer, A.J. Hume: A Very Short Introduction
Kenny, Anthony, The Rise of Modern Philosophy
Bertrand Russell, History of Western Philosophy

[@ThenNow]

Script & sources at: www.thenandnow.co/2023/06/24/introduction-to-hume-an-enquiry-concerning-human-understanding/ ► Sign up for the newsletter to get concise digestible summaries: www.thenandnow.co/the-newsletter/ ► Why Support Then & Now? www.patreon.com/user/about?u=3517018

[@gedde5703]

Words cannot begin to describe how excellent you are at presenting these different philosophical theories in not only a comprehensive manner, but an entertaining one as well. Your voice is perfect for narration, and the visual editing is simply superb. This is how you make philosophy interesting. And it is exactly what it needs, so thank you for your contribution.

[@ThenNow]

Thank you! Comments like this really make my day so it's really appreciated. Glad you'r enjoying :)

[@williamwalden3991]

my seminar is in 1 hour and i havent done the reading, this video saved my life

[@adriancioroianu1704]

This book makes Hume a champion of reason. His intuitions are superb and very relevant today and among with others are the foundation of the progress we experience today. I'm especially fascinated in the context of the time he wrote by his arguments of the understanding of causation and how this relates to the morality of humans. It took 300years and probably will take more until we will finally realize what exactly we understand by punishment in the law framework and formulate a more fair justice system.

[@Dorian_sapiens]

I can't wait for part two. Hume is so important.

[@ThenNow]

Coming up this week :)

[@williamh626]

This video is sooooo good. Hume is soo underrated. I wish I learned about him sooner.

[@jans7073]

absolutely amazing content, keep it up !

[@ThenNow]

Thank you!

[@raresmircea]

Wonderful content delivered in great style. Thanks!

[@ThenNow]

:) Thanks!

[@edwardbackman744]

My rationalist professor tweeted recently “A wise man apportions his belief to the evidence. But how does he know what the evidence is? He apportions his belief about what the evidence is to the evidence about what the evidence is. But how does he know what *that* evidence is? How about don’t read Hume?”

[@justinnrzellet6287]

Technically you can dig deep enough to understand the complex nature of beliefs. You may not find the root per say but you can find contradictions in you thinking and get a better sense of what evidence is best evidence

[@Welcometotheparadigmshift]

Place your hand on the evidence. Pick it up and hold it. Now read Hume.

[@ravosblackrose]

Evidence comes by way if judgement and the senses. The subjectivity is a feature of evidence. Thus, we avoid any sort of evidence infinite regression problem because hume doesnt cover what causes the passions. It isnt a logical matter, while infinite regress is a logical objection.

[@heddavanbelle6071]

Thanks, this is perfect! I'm currently in Italian highschool, where of course we study philosophy. Only problem for me is that after only 2 months here, I don't understand Italian lessons about these interesting but complicated topics. This video helps me so much to understand the base ideas and it enables me to discuss with my classmates, for I've never studied philosophy before. It really got me interested!

[@eleftheriosepikuridis9110]

This is expressing such groundbreaking Ideas in such a an amazing, short, dense, but very comprehensible way - I thank you so much for making this, and beg you to do more Hume.

[@shamsuns339]

Thank you soo much! You’ve helped me study for my exam:)

[@vinix333]

Thank you, Thank you! Beautifully done! ❤️

[@jamesdsteele99]

Brilliant! Thank you for the great work.

[@tiagovasc]

Great stuff. Would be nice if you mentioned the specific song you used.

[@SanderIOSgaming]

Please do more hume!

[@ThenNow]

Coming up this week :)

[@alevieirareis]

Amazing content. Please, give us more! =)

[@Bebeflapula]

Oh wow, this is good. Keep it up!

[@dripaholic_7161]

Very good explanation 💯

[@DouwedeJong]

Thanks for making this video.

[@13krava]

Then and now + hume 👌👌👌

[@AP-yx1mm]

Indeed, my favorite philosopher. I would like to see a video on Feuerbach and his critics of "speculative philosophy" and maybe to contrast the empiricism, Quine and his "Two Dogmas of Empiricism". To see the "is-ought problem" in the light of Hilary Putnam would be a bigger plus!

[@johnarbuckle2619]

@@AP-yx1mm Yes, that would be amazing.

[@ThenNow]

@@AP-yx1mm I'm going to touch on the is-ought problem in the next video but haven't read Hilary Putnam - should I?

[@brreezy421]

Hume was such a cool guy. Would've been awesome to have a drink or hang out

[@romannoodle7005]

Great video.

[@rickhudson7929]

Great video

[@DarkOnikage345]

Yes! Hume vid! Very important to Deleuze!

[@ThenNow]

Would like to do a video on Hume and Deleuze soon!

[@jeanh1517]

There is something beautiful about this video.

[@ZainKhan-sm8gr]

I know Jean! 😭 I can't put a finger on it but it felt so illuminating.

[@mka1717]

what is Hume's input on what is the what is foundation of all conclusions from reasoning? have a project on that

[@HxH2011DRA]

What a genius

[@thomasblackwell9036]

Great vid

[@LogicGated]

The fact that he wrote that landmark work at 28 is crazy.

[@dom-i-neek2923]

I could not imagine being this brilliant this young. It's a wonder how he stayed sane.

[@user-xi8ux1yj2e]

i cant believe no one mentioned you spelled 'peals' wrong lol its peel* but other than, amazing work and you presented the information in a very digestible and accessible way. it would have been hard for me to understand what Hume was saying if I was just reading his books.

[@monoman4083]

nice one. thanks..

[@1999_reborn]

I love your voice bro

[@jerryjones7293]

WONDERFUL

[@PrimitiveBaroque]

I love Hume.

[@saysHotdogs]

omg thank you. My professor is wonderful but his explanation of Hume's cause and effect was really confusing

[@vaxxdnrelaxxd]

timing could not be better

[@vaxxdnrelaxxd]

magic

[@Ifitmatters52]

Music was pretty good tho , Can’t find the exact songs

[@Rico-Suave_]

Watched all of it 11:06

[@jlcapaz]

I can't believe you misspelled "peel" by introducing me to a new word ("peal"; a word describing sounds).

[@alexanderthedude5474]

incredible

[@user-be3lq1il4t]

David Hume deadass looks like Mayor Milford from lazy town - QUOTE ME -

[@davidallsopp4030]

Why Would You Say Something So Controversial Yet So Brave?

[@mjolninja9358]

David Allsopp because he’s brave and controversial

[@user-be3lq1il4t]

@@mjolninja9358 uhh it's they/them

[@swish4773]

Imagine a philosopher reading your comment and trying to figure out how a dead ass makes sense.

[@lisamoag6548]

Thank you.

[@wodenravens]

Isn't Berkeley pronounced "BARKlee"?

[@mjolninja9358]

Born in EdinBRUH

[@ourlovehowerica]

The methodical doubt and skepticism, father of modern british though, that's where's permenent state of doubt remains in all anglo saxons. That may help knowledge for sure, but never emotional matters.

[@angelohieronymous2692]

Great

[@bernhardwardein2884]

Why on earth is there music?

[@dreyri2736]

"We only see A lead to be" Shouldn't it be more that we don't see the cause between them but actually just see two seperate events happen, then only when we connect the ideas in our mind do we form the idea of cause? I haven't read the enquiry in english but I think that's more what he was getting at or maybe it doesn't matter and I'm just being pedantic.

[@lisamoag6548]

Instinct exists in people.

[@adamzazarinno1065]

Beautiful video, but 7:38 the earths distance from the sun has no bearings on whether there is snow or not, it’s the earth’s axis. Earth is actually closest in winter and farthest in summer. Yes this rant was absolutely necessary to the N-th degree. I get very OCD when people get science facts wrong XD But really tho, your content is amazing

[@adamzazarinno1065]

Unless I’m taking the whole thing out of context and you already knew that and were just quoting Hume, then I’m the dumbest person on earth

[@ThenNow]

@@adamzazarinno1065I did not know that! Thank you for the correction :)

[@vipulshukla1913]

@@adamzazarinno1065 Really need more and more people like you. Not even kidding.

[@Wbjpen]

David never assumed, that's why he's called David Hume.

[@robinac6897]

Hume states seven associations not three.

[@Sazi_de_Afrikan]

The problem of induction is only a problem for philosophers of science. Ones that are realists to be exact. Those influenced by either constructive empiricism or Deweyan Instrumentalism are not alarmed by Hume's "challenge". Mostly because the latter believes that Hume's "critique" was stuck in the old Quest for Certainty (see text of the same name, Reconstruction in Philosophy (1920, I think), or Unmodern Philosophy and Modern Philosophy (2012)). Also, in line with James radical empiricism, they usually reject what Hume says about conjunctive relations as trying to find knowledge outside the enhancement of ordinary experience and in-line with Peirce, see Hume's as well as Cartesian type doubt as based on a fallacy of putting too much stock in the abstract theorizing going on by the philosopher. Finally, the Deweyan follows up with the notion that Hume's empiricism is mostly a sensationalistic theory thinks that experience is about "sensing" the relations mentioned earlier, which again, is said to be a weird notion--metaphysically and ordinarily.

[@DugongClock]

The sun isn’t farther away from the earth during winter...

[@tomslover7512]

I am glad someone else noticed this. The sun is farthest from the Earth at the June solstice and nearest at the December solstice. It's the angle of the sunlight as it strikes the Earth that determines the surface temperature of the planet; the tilt of the Earth and all that.

[@dieselphiend]

Is there some sort of divergence taking place within humanity? Kind of seems like roughly half of everyone is attempting to climb out of Plato's Cave, while the other half is sealing themselves inside.

[@lukaobradovic9784]

But if the Sun doesnt rise tommorow i simply have to scientifically discover why, then I may discover that it became a black hole or maybe we live in a matrix and someone turned off the Sun

[@VoltaireVI]

The sun dies, we all die. No more science or anything.

[@Jake-kn3xg]

Are you the same bloke as exhurb1a or whatever he calls himself

[@AP-yx1mm]

I don't think so.

[@ThenNow]

I'm not. Am a fan, though.

[@expectationofplenty]

Hume ongous

[@friedrickhugo7562]

Suprisingly similar to Al Ghazali and Muslim Occasionalism

[@amymschmitter5609]

Nice production values, but this has a number of errors, including an incorrect account of the reasoning that rests on "relations of ideas". This is NOT a matter of tracing associations of ideas. Moreover, associative relations are not "logical" (whatever that means for Hume): they embody psychological quirks of how human minds happen to move (causally). (As a matter of historical fact, Hume adopted the associations of ideas from the psychological operations that his predecessors, e.g., Locke and Hutcheson, took to be irrational.) There are other relations, including "logical" ones, but Hume does not think they are psychologically as forceful as associations. Moreover, Hume is NOT an empiricist about knowledge, but about concepts (the material of thought). (Note: I only went through the first 4.5 minutes.)

[@hesssn]

Edinbruh

[@lisamoag6548]

Balderdash!

[@KolotovGleb]

Sometimes, I think these philosophers create their own systems of thought and out of respect people have to study them, like one out of respect memories a poem or tries to analyse a work of art, thus adding value to them. This is science-fiction shit, bloody complicated, similar to when you enjoy the likes of Tolkien or R. Martin cause of the world that they have created. You investigate, dedicate your time to it, give it value when able to analyse and to justify the system of thought. (or never mind, it's just me who's stupid ...)

[@orglancs]

To Gleb K Yes, exactly, I agree with you. They start from premises that are completely subjective and construct a great big system with feet of clay, if you know that English idiom. Yours is a courageous comment. Look at all the worshipful appreciation this video and Hume are getting in the comments.

[@G_Demolished]

@@orglancs So you’re saying you’re against philosophy because you disagree with a premise, which is a term from logic, which is a branch of philosophy. To quote Dr. Spock, fascinating.

[@Capnmax]

Peal the banana!?

[@jrb4935]

The sun won't rise tomorrow. It doesn't rise any day.

[@lisamoag6548]

Balderdash!