F-YS Ethics and Literature Terri Gordon
             Hume, An Enquiry Concerning the Principles of Morals (1751)
             1) Hume’s approach to morality is a descriptive-explanatory one, not a normative one (meaning he wants to describe, not prescribe, moral conduct). Hume claims to proceed as an anatomist (who draws conclusions based on empirical evidence) as opposed to a painter (who presents moral principles in their most favored light). Do you think Hume takes the position of an anatomist or a painter in this work? (pay attention to part II of the conclusion, pp. 79-82).
             2) Humes’ project in the Enquiry is to determine whether reason or sentiment constitutes the foundation of moral conduct. According to Hume, which faculty determines our moral dispositions? How does Hume’s position differ from Kant’s? With which position do you agree?
             3) Hume’s account of human psychology is central to his theory of morality. Hume offers a naturalistic foundation for social practices and institutions rather than a rational or theological one. Yet Hume’s conception of human nature diverges radically from that of previous thinkers (particularly Hobbes and Machiavelli, who understand human beings to be motivated by fundamentally egotistical, power-seeking drives). In what ways, according to Hume, are we not wholly self-seeking? Do you think his understanding of human psychology allows for a genuine morality? If not, what are the problems with Hume’s conception of morality? Read carefully the section on self–love (pp. 42-51).
             4) Hume employs a metaphor of the theater (p. 44) to demonstrate that we are not indifferent to one another. Like spectators in a theater, Hume holds, the pain or pleasure of others produces echoes of pain or pleasure in us. Do you think this is a valid metaphor? Could the theater metaphor prove precisely the opposite – that we take pl
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