To answer the question of why we have so great a propension to ascribe an identity to these successive perceptions which make up experience, hume says that we. Of the sceptical and other systems of philosophy section vi. The origin of our ideas all the perceptions of the human mind fall into two distinct kinds, which i shall call impressions and ideas. There is little consensus, however, on what exactly was the source of his discontent. To illustrate the notion of perfect identity he uses the example, familiar from locke 1975. After establishing humes account of self and personal identity and his basic realism the discussion. Hume on personal identity, galen strawson gives a short, lively account of hume s thoughts about the human mind or self and how we come to think of ourselves as one continuously existing thing. Hume on self and personal identity hume introduces the topic of self and personal identity in book 1 of the treatise in a section titled of personal identity t 1. The perceptions which constitute a person are neither unvaried nor uninterrupted, and since there are no logical connections between perceptions, they can only form a composite rather than a single unified object. Hume s theory of personal identity is the one thing in which he confesses to having made considerable mistakes in the appendix to the treatise app. David humes concept of the self, with special reference. Yet in the appendix to the treatise, he writes that. If a person has not had a particular impression she will.
University of hawaii press is collaborating with jstor to. Hume on personal identity hume on personal identity pears, david. Robison brain transplants are now medically feasible, but the whole head would probably have to be grafted at the same time, said david hume, md, chief of the. Hume s selfdoubts about personal identity don garrett in the section of a treatise of human nature entitled of personal identity, hume presents his view of that subject with pride. The denial of the idea of personal identity as a result of humes. I think that hume s account of personal identity undoubtedly faces serious difficulties. The strongest sensation, the most violent passion, say they, instead of. For what has been assumed is just that persons do have an identity. Sbn 25163, he raises serious doubts about his book 1 account in the appendix, and returns to discussions of self in book 2 when he develops his theory of the passions. Granted that there are various poststructuralist approaches to the question of subjectivity, i.
In the previous section, he has rejected the ancient philosophys posit of a mental substance, or soul, in which the perceptions of the mind are said to inhere, and has argued that, in fact, each perception fits the definition of substance as something which may exist by itself. At the opening of the treatise, ideas and impressions are distinguished by their degrees of vivacity. Hume was the first western philosopher to unmask the confu sions attending our idea of personal identity and subsequently to reject the idea as a fiction. Hume and the idea of personal identity free essay example.
To understand hume s account of personal identity one must, as hume says, take the matter pretty deep t 1. A general discussion of main stream theories of self and personal identity will provide a contemporary context to which hume s account of identity can be allocated. Hume admits that we have establishd notions of personal identity t,1. This act of the mind has never yet been explaind by. A new interpretation of hume s noself theory is put forward by arguing for an eliminative rather than a reductive view of personal identity, and by approaching the problem in terms of phenomenology, buddhist psychology, and the idea of a constructed selfimage. I assume that david hume seeks to establish a criterion of human knowledge and moral behavior by thinking the fundamental concepts from philosophical tradition, such as substance and personal identity or subjectivity, and turning between the denial and the affirmation of them. Hume thought that this tendency goes a long way towards explaining mistaken views about personal identity. Paragraph numbering was not included in the original text and has been added for ease of reference. For hume, anybody attempting to view his true self sees instead a version colored by their own subjectivity. David hume on personal identity and the indirect passions robert s. Hume s theory as described above seems easy to follow and very appealing, but hume s contribution to personal identity is generally not as popular as it deserves. These differ in the degrees of force and liveliness with which they. It will be argued that a distinction must be drawn between self and. In the first book hume writes, we cannot form to ourselves a just ideaof the taste of apineapple, without having actually tasted it t 5.
We now proceed to explain the nature of personal identity, which has become so great a question in philosophy, especially of late years in england, where all the abstruser sciences are studyd with a peculiar ardour and application. Hume subscribed to the bundle theory in that he claimed the image of self was dependent on a range of different variables, or perceptions, that were in a constant state of change. It will be shown that such an account can maintain identity of the self as an imperfect identity. Defending humes theory of personal identity and discarding. He puts it forward in the main text of the treatise with his usual panache, and then takes it back in the appendix. In two places in the discussion of personal identity in book 1 of the treatise. Hume in the treatise was proud of his view of belief. For, he thought, when we encounter several different things existing in succession and differing gradually, one from the next. In this paper, i examine hume s views on personal identity.
Part of hume s fame and importance owes to his boldly skeptical approach to a range of philosophical subjects. The thesis investigates david hume s concept of the self as it is presented in book one and two of the treatise of human nature. The objects of the mind vary along a single dimension of force and vivacity. Hume, buddhism, and personal identity the problem of personal identity is often said to be one of accounting for what it is that gives persons their. And here tis evident, the same method of reasoning must be. The strongest statement of this view is to be found in terence penelhums hume on personal. Early modern texts treatise of human nature, book i. Hume distinguishes personal identity as it regards our thought or imagina.
The problem of personal identity is often said to be one of accounting for what it is that gives persons their identity over time. Of personal identity by david hume this text is in the public domain and may be freely reproduced. He then goes on to use his empiricist background to come up with a few premises that lead to a conclusion that there is no self or at least that personal identity is neither numeric nor qualitative. And here tis evident, the same method of reasoning must be continud. This statement by nineteenth century philosopher james hutchison stirling reflects the unique position in intellectual thought held by scottish philosopher david hume. Hume, belief and personal identity justin broackes brown university. Thus, the best description of simple impressions is pointing out examples, such as something which is hot. Hume, personal identity, self, identity, bundle theory, skepticism. Exactly what he thinks about this subject is hard to figure out, and some interpreters have argued that hume doesnt actually give a positive account of personal identity at all, but is in fact altogether sceptical about the notion 1. Personal identity, hume s second thoughts, connecting principles. Despite some negative opinions on his theory, i will try to see how to. From this formation of belief in general, we arrive at belief in causes and continued existence, and then move on to the belief in personal identity. Of the sceptical and other systems of philosophy, section vi. In what follows i will argue that hume s unpopularity is partly due to the fact that the theory is at odds with how we normally view identity, and partly due to the ambiguity of.
Personal identity and the skeptical system of philosophy. However, contra penelhum, i think that one mistake hume hasnt made is to deny the very possibility of personal identity. The questions i wish to explore inthis paper pertain to the status of personal identity in the context of poststructuralist decenterings of subjectivity. In this paper i try to understand david hume s theory of the ideas as an alternative ontology. May 12, 2015 we now proceed to explain the nature of personal identity, which has become so great a question in philosophy, especially of late years in england where all the abstruser sciences are studyd with a peculiar ardour and application. Mar 28, 2020 david hume argued that there is no simple, constant self to be found within a persons aggregate experiences and actions throughout their conscious life. Sophiaomni 1 of personal identity david hume there are some philosophers who imagine we are every moment intimately conscious of what we call our self.
Personal identity and the indirect passions has experienced the relevant impression. It will be shown that hume s theory of identity can accommodate the combined theory of identity, which maintains mental as well as bodily criteria of self and personal identity. Hume s positive account of personal identity personal identity, for hume, must be a species of imperfect identity. The concept of the self in david hume and the buddha. These two pieces of information are connected with one another, and in nigel denniss novel cards of identity the victims are deprived of both at once. While some have accused hume of rejecting personal identity, much in the way berkeley denies material substances. Hume s discussion of personal identity is primarily built on the role of the imagination, which it plays in the formation of belief in general. Pdf humes second thoughts on personal identity researchgate. Personal identity, humes second thoughts, connecting principles. There are no persons that continue to exist over time. For an updated english translation, see jonathan bennett, some texts from early modern philosophy.
Download fulltext pdf download fulltext pdf read fulltext. This idea can be formulated as the following argument. The center point of the discussion is hume s understanding of the self as the bundle of perceptions. David hume on personal identity 2016\3\6 david hume on. Introduction the problems of personal identity the persistence question the population question the personal ontology question the question of what matters in identity the persistence question. David hume on personal identity and the indirect passions scholarly reflection on hume s doctrine of self and personal identity continues to focus on the sections of personal identity and the appendix to a treatise ofhuman nature. Hume s theory of the self and its identity it is a widely held view among philosophers that hume s doctrine of personal identity is seriously mistaken, that he makes claims about the existence and nature of personal identity that are clearly false. Of personal identity david hume there are some philosophers who imagine we are every moment intimately conscious of what we call our self. Hume delivers his account of personal identity in treatise 1. Hume regards identity as a distinct idea of an object, that remains invariable and uninterrupted thro a supposd variation of time.
Henderson i scholarly reflection on hume s doctrine of self and personal identity continues to focus on the sections of personal identity and the appendix to a peatise of human nature. Hume studies volume xix, number 2, november 1993, pp. David humes concept of the self, with special reference to. In this paper, i will demonstrate that hume presents a positive and constructive view of the self in his discussion of the indirect passions found in book ii of a treatise of human nature 1739. Although it is a short book, even moderate critical. Hume, using his empiricist background beliefs, develops a threepremised argument against the idea of a. Why did hume retract his theory of personal identity. David hume, true to his extreme skepticism, rejects the notion of identity over time. Of personal identity david hume there are some philosophers who imagine we are every moment intimately. Pdf hume on personal identity nicko miranda academia. The book is written with great energy, and with an evident urge to challenge a felt orthodoxy that is not always identified.
Second, he proves that personal identity is not in the body or substance, but in consciousness. Humes theory of the self and its identity cambridge university press. While some have accused hume of rejecting personal identity, much in the way berkeley denies material. Hume, personal identity, and the experimental method. Pdf based on previous thinkers such as john locke, the scottish philosopher david hume developed his own. Ideas, their origin, composition, connection, abstraction, etc.
One of the problems with hume s discussion, that terence penelhum also raises in hume on personal identity, is that he does not seem to have a clear conception of the notion of identity. Pdf what was hume s problem about personal identity in the appendix. David hume on personal identity and the indirect passions. To further illustrate the identity of the human, which will help us describe the physical traits of the body, we can think of the human as a jacolantern with a candle inside, consisting of two parts. David humes concept of the self, with special reference to a. Download the ios download the android app other related materials. Mar 31, 2021 this paper considers hume s account of personal identity in his treatise of human nature. But it is easy to see that they are different things, and the philosophical problem of personal identity is in fact concerned with only one of them particular identity. And here tis evident, the same method of reasoning must be continud, which has so successfully explaind the identity of plants, and animals, and ships, and.
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