Hume’s Empiricism: Causality, Knowledge, and Ethics
Hume’s Empiricist Principles
From the law of cause and effect arises the problem of causality. Applying this principle to empirical fact and attempting to find a corresponding idea or impression, if none exists, the cause-effect relationship should be rejected. Although one phenomenon may always succeed another, there may be no impression of their relationship. The connection between them is simply a product of imagination, and therefore, that relationship would not be considered true knowledge.
This question also raises doubt about the validity of science, as it is mainly based on cause-effect relationships. The philosopher states that scientific statements cannot be considered universal nor infallible, but rather probable. Years later, Karl Popper’s theory of falsification would resume Hume’s scientific theory.
Metaphysical Empiricism and Knowledge
The principle is also applied to metaphysical empiricism. The author concludes that metaphysics cannot be verified by experience and therefore cannot be considered true knowledge. This assertion leads to a criticism of Cartesian metaphysics, which is based on the idea of substance.
Criticism of Substance
Hume criticizes the idea of extended substance because we have no direct experience of it. Imagination is responsible for granting the continuity characteristic of substance, and we have no impressions of it. As for the idea of infinite substance, we cannot have experienced it, as that experience would also be infinite. Therefore, there is no true knowledge of God.
Critique of Thinking Substance
However, Hume argues that religion and belief in God are necessary for man. Finally, the idea of thinking substance is also criticized because he defends that one cannot have direct experience of the self, even though it is the self that receives the remaining impressions. Its existence is only a guess.
Hume’s Ethical Theory
Regarding his ethical theory, Hume was one of the first philosophers to advocate for the importance of emotions in human behavior. He believed human nature inclines us towards what is good for ourselves and for others.
Analysis of “An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding”
The text analyzed is part of David Hume’s “An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding.” In it, the author argues that although reason seems unlimited, it is actually subject to the information provided by the senses and experience, i.e., our perceptions. Reason is simply responsible for compounding, transposing, increasing, or decreasing the information received. This concept is known as the empiricist principle.
Classification of Perceptions
Since all mental contents originate from experience and perceptions, Hume classifies them by various criteria. Based on their liveliness and intensity, he classifies them into two types: first, what Hume called “impressions” – immediate and specific sensations from experience or reflection; and second, less intense ones, which he calls thoughts or ideas, which are copies of impressions.
Additionally, he classifies perceptions by their composition as simple or complex, and by their origin as perceptions of sensation or reflection.
Laws of Association of Ideas
In addition to classifying ideas, the philosopher outlines the different relationships between them, caused by the imagination’s combination and union of simple impressions. Hume classifies these relationships into three laws of association:
- Similarity: The mind associates ideas that share some similarity.
- Spatiotemporal Contiguity: One idea leads to another when they occur close together in space or time.
- Cause and Effect: This law creates a link in our minds between two events that have occurred in the past and are expected to occur in the future.
Relations of Ideas vs. Factual Matters
Finally, the author distinguishes between relations of ideas, which do not describe the world and stem from reasoning, being valid in all circumstances, and factual matters, which are relations between events demonstrable by experience and are therefore contingent and probable.