Hume, Passion, and Action

Elizabeth S. Radcliffe

An original interpretation of one of the most famous theories in modern philosophy
Challenges a predominant reading of Hume
Provides illuminating historical context - features an appendix on 17th- and 18th-century theories of the passions

Hume, Passion, and Action

Elizabeth S. Radcliffe

Description

David Hume's theory of action is well known for several provocative theses, including that passion and reason cannot be opposed over the direction of action. Elizabeth S. Radcliffe defends an original interpretation of Hume's views on passion, reason, and motivation which is consistent with other theses in Hume's philosophy, loyal to his texts, and historically situated. She challenges the now orthodox interpretation of Hume on motivation, presenting an alternative that situates Hume closer to "Humeans" than many recent interpreters have. Part of the strategy is to examine the thinking of the early modern intellectuals to whom Hume responds. Most of these thinkers insisted that passions lead us to pursue harmful objects unless regulated by reason; and most regarded passions as representations of good and evil, which can be false. Understanding Hume's response to these claims requires appreciating his respective characterizations of reason and passion. The author argues that Hume's thesis that reason is practically impotent apart from passion is about beliefs generated by reason, rather than about the capacity of reason. Furthermore, the argument makes sense of Hume's sometimes-ridiculed description of passions as "original existences" having no reference to objects. The author also shows how Hume understood morality as intrinsically motivating, while holding that moral beliefs are not themselves motives, and why he thought of passions as self-regulating, contrary to the admonitions of the rationalists.

Hume, Passion, and Action

Elizabeth S. Radcliffe

Introduction
1. Motives to Action
2. Hume's Argument for the Inertness of Reason
3. Belief: Some Complications
4. The Passions as Original Existences
5. Morality and Motivation
6. Motivational Dynamics and Regulation of The Passions
Conclusion: The Passions in Hume's Project
Appendix: The Passions and Reason in Seventeenth- and Eighteenth-Century Philosophy

Hume, Passion, and Action

Elizabeth S. Radcliffe

Author Information

Elizabeth S. Radcliffe is Professor of Philosophy at the College of William & Mary. Her research interests include Hume, early modern philosophy, theories of the passions, motivational psychology, practical reason, and ethics. She is editor of A Companion to Hume (Blackwell, 2008), co-editor of Late Modern Philosophy: Contemporary Readings with Commentary (Wiley-Blackwell, 2006), and author of many journal articles and book chapters. Radcliffe has served as Hume Society President, co-editor of the journal Hume Studies, Executive Director of the American Philosophical Association, and chair of the Departments of Philosophy at Santa Clara University and at the College of William & Mary.

Hume, Passion, and Action

Elizabeth S. Radcliffe

Reviews and Awards

"Recommended." -- M. G. Spencer, CHOICE

"a detailed, textually sensitive, historically grounded, and exhaustively researched work seeking to prove that the traditional interpretation has decisive textual support and internal coherence. Not all opponents will be persuaded, but the book gives all scholars much to admire and plenty to chew on. . . . Radcliffe examines . . . central interpretive issues from all sides and addresses many dissenting interpretations with care and fairness. There is insight on every page. The rewards of every chapter, for anyone interested in Hume's psychology or metaethics, extend far beyond anything I can address here." -- Rachel Cohon, Philosophical Review

"Elizabeth Radcliffe's book is an important and original contribution to scholarship on Hume's ethics and moral psychology. Throughout, she deftly combines important discussions of Hume's predecessors and contemporaries that serve to contextualize his views with in-depth analysis of Hume's texts...she shows an impressive familiarity with more recent scholarship on Hume's and Humean ethics, and deploys much of this recent scholarship to frame her own interpretation of Hume's ethics and moral psychology...sophisticated and nuanced." -- Jacqueline Taylor, University of San Francisco, Journal of the History of Philosophy

"Reading Radcliffe's book is an excellent reminder of how far the history of philosophy has matured in the last fifty years. It is also an object lesson in the philosophical value of such study. As with evolution, later does not always mean better, and few moral philosophers or moral psychologists can afford to ignore the riches work such as hers unveils. For scholars of Hume, and of his seventeenth and eighteenth century context, it will be indispensable." -- Simon Blackburn, Notre Dame Philosophical Review