Annotation
Phenomenological Interpretation of Hume's Treatise of Human Nature
In the upcoming course, we will attempt to interpret one of the most important books of modern philosophy, Hume's
Treatise of Human Nature (published in three volumes in 1739-40) from the phenomenological stanpoint. Our reading will try to utilise a principle of contextual analysis of Hume's text. This principle pressuposes that Hume tacitly works with the consciousness of a wider context of relations between feelings and ideas. This context forms a background for a particular consciousness of this or that development of the case of an individual experience. Hume is thus able to differentiate essential differences between different types of experiences and go beyond his reduction of all contents of our mind into impressions and ideas. This approach also allows him to complement his teaching of the tranfer of vivacity from impressions to ideas.
The contextual reading will be applied on Hume's explanation of our belief in the existence of the independent and external world (Treatise, Book I) and on the interpretation of the passionate and personal nature of our mind and its empathy (sympathy) which for Hume constitutes the intersubjective sense of the lived world.