David Hume: Platonic Philosopher, Continental Ancestor

156 Pages·2012·0.79 MB·English

by  Hume

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David Hume
SUNY series in Contemporary Continental Philosophy
—————
Dennis J. Schmidt, editor
David Hume
Platonic Philosopher, Continental Ancestor
BernArD FreyDBerg
On the cover are details from Views of the Bosphorus:
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Published by State University of new york Press, Albany
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Freydberg, Bernard, 1947–
David Hume : platonic philosopher, continental ancestor / Bernard Freydberg.
p. cm. — (SUny series in contemporary continental philosophy)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBn 978-1-4384-4215-0 (hardcover : alk. paper)
1. Hume, David, 1711–1776. I. Title.
B1498.F74 2012
192—dc23 2011023763
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
For Dennis J Schmidt:
Original Thinker, Friend to Philosophy and Philosophers

Contents
Acknowledgments ix
Introduction 1
Deleuze’s Hume . . . and Ours: Madness, Retrieval 9
Chapter I
Aspects of An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding 17
Chapter II
Aspects of An Enquiry Concerning the Principles of Morals 49
Chapter III
Hume’s Philosophy of Art 93
Conclusion 113

Notes 119
Bibliography 129
Index 133

Acknowledgments
The following people and institutions supported the writing of this book in
various ways. I thank them, one and all, more than I can say.
I was blessed with two terrific editors at the State University of New York
Press. Jane Bunker, Editor in Chief, with whom I began this book before she
moved on to the directorship at Northwestern University Press, is a brilliant
editor and a brilliant human being. Given her background in philosophy,
her support for this book gave me much confidence. Andrew Kenyon, now
Assistant Acquisitions Editor and in charge of philosophy books, has been a
delight to work with.
Sami Gülgöz, Dean of the School of Social Sciences and Humanities at
Koç University, Istanbul, approved a leave for the summer of 2008 that made
the research and part of the writing of this book possible. Shannon Sullivan,
Chair of the Pennsylvania State University Philosophy Department, granted
me the position of Visiting Scholar for that same summer. This enabled me
to avail myself of the wonderful Penn State libraries and other facilities. James
Swindal, Chair of the Duquesne University Philosophy Department, graciously
appointed me Scholar in Residence, the post I now occupy. I completed the
book under his and its aegis.
Two anonymous readers for the State University of New York Press pro‑
vided me with reviews that combined encouragement with astute criticism. A
long conversation with Jennifer Mensch of the Penn State Philosophy Depart‑
ment on pre‑Kantian philosophy was most illuminating. Michael Rudar and
John Fritz, two of my former undergraduate philosophy students who are
completing their PhD degrees at Duquesne University, proofread and offered
helpful comments on the manuscript. Both will surely be excellent professors
before too long.
Kathleen Manning and Rita McClelland of Bailey Library at Slippery
Rock University were, as they have been in the past, exceptionally helpful in
securing materials for this book. One could not hope for better librarians.
ix