Hume: Imagination, Representation, and Metaphysics
Hume: Imagination and Representation
For Locke, representations in our minds are caused by material objects. Hume disagrees, arguing that we only know representations, not the external world. The principle of causality applies only between representations; we cannot use it to connect representations with something beyond empirical experience.
Hume’s Criticism of Substance
Empiricists view matter as obscure. Hume argues that substance, the concept of an object’s identity and persistence, is beyond sensory experience. What we call substance is an aggregate of representations, not a true underlying entity.
Substance as Representation
Substance is the perceived persistence of an aggregate of perceptions. This aggregate is contingent; its components could be different. The metaphysical concept of the soul, which determines identity, is beyond empiricism. Hume views the soul as an aggregate of perceptions, a collection that creates a sense of identity.
Critique of God
We lack sensory experience of God, making His existence unknowable. Hume takes an agnostic position. He critiques the idea of an omnipotent and omniscient God, arguing that such a concept arises from the human imagination’s ability to infinitely magnify qualities. God, as traditionally conceived, is an imaginary creation.
Critique of Causation
The notion of infinity also stems from the imagination’s ability to extend magnitudes indefinitely. Hume denies a necessary, ontological connection in causation, grounding it instead in perception.
Mathematics in Hume’s Philosophy
Mathematics is important for Hume, particularly given Newton’s influence on philosophy. However, the connection between mathematics and metaphysics is strong. Rationalist philosophers, often mathematicians, use mathematics to suggest knowledge beyond the senses. Hume distinguishes between impressions (sensations) and ideas (copies of impressions). Mathematics, dealing with necessary relationships between ideas, lacks experimental basis but is considered true and universally valid.