David Hume

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David Hume Of Liberty and Necessity
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Hume Us Liberty
Free will Necessity Determinism
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At the heart of determinism is the concept of
causality.
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every event has a causal explanation. ltgt the
past conditions fully determine the present
conditions for an event. (determinism)
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Hume's argument against cause as power P1 We
never experience cause as power. P2 All our
knowledge of the external world comes from
experience. C We do not know that cause as
power exists in the external world.
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Causality is not the power of one event to
produce another.
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Causality is (1) the uniformly observable
constant conjunctions. (2) our expectation of a
future event, given a prior one.
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Psychological claim People believe that every
event has a causal explanation.
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We believe this about things. And, We believe
this about people.
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Sketch of Hume's argument for determinism P1
Every event has a full causal explanation ltgt the
past conditions fully determine the present. P2
We believe that every event has a full causal
explanation. C We believe that the past
conditions fully determine the present.
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Hume's determinism is not a physicalist or
scientific determinism.
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People's actions are caused by
motives. Motives do not look like
causes. But what do causes look like?
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P1 If causes are only constant conjunctions
(and our expectation of a kind of event), then
motives (desires, etc.) look like causes. P2
Causes are only constant conjunctions (and our
expection of a kind of event). C Motives
(desires, etc.) are causes.
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Liberty is (1) freedom from constraint or
force (2) the phenomena of choice leading to
action.
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Ethics is incompatible with indeterminism. P1
If indeterminism is true, then people act
randomly. P2 If people act randomly, then our
system of laws is useless to deter crime. P3
We do not believe that our system of laws is
useless. -----------------------------------------
--------- C We do not believe in
indeterminism.
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Richard Taylor, Freedom and Determinism
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One argument that human behaviour is
determined P1 Determinism for everything in
the universe, there are past conditions, given
which that thing could not be other than it
is. P2 Human beings exist completely in the
universe. ---------------------------------------
-------- C There are past conditions, given
which human beings could not be other than they
are.
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A compatibilist view Soft Determinism Soft
determinism holds (1) Determinism for
everything in the universe, there are past
conditions, given which that thing could not be
other than it is. (2) Free will (a) you have
free will when you are not constrained or forced,
and (b) your action is caused by an inner state.
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Taylor's rejection of Soft Determinism P1 If
soft determinism is true, then you are free if
(a) your action is not constrained or forced and
(b) if your action is caused by an inner
state. P2 If it is possible for a mad
scientist to control your inner states, then (a)
your action is not constrained, (b), your action
is caused by an inner state, and (c) you are not
free. P3 It is possible for a mad scientist to
control your inner states. -----------------------
--------------------------------- C1 You are
not free, you are not constrained and your
actions are caused by your inner states. (P2 and
P3) C2 Soft determinism is false. (C1 and P1)
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Data of Deliberation (1) We sometimes
deliberate. (2) Sometimes, what we do is up to
us.
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Theory of Agency Persons cause their own
behaviour. An action is free ltgt (1) if it is
caused by the person, (2) there were no past
conditions which caused the person to perform it,
and (3) performed it for some reason.
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Theory of Agency Weird, because (1) people are
special things in the universe (2) strange
notion of causality.
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John Stuart Mill Utilitarianism
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Principle of Utility An action is right in
proportion as it tend to produce happiness, and
wrong in proportion as it tends to produce
unhappiness. Happiness pleasure Unhappiness
pain
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Hierarchy of Pleasures A pleasure P1 is better
than P2 ltgt all or most competent judges
(those who have tried both P1 and P2) give a
decided preference for P1.
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Proof of the Principle of Utility P1 Every
person desires their own happiness. P2 Only
proof that something is desirable is that people
desire it. ---------------------------------------
--- C1 Every person's happiness is desirable to
that person. C2 The happiness of everyone is
desirable to everyone.
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Happiness is the only intrinsic good Other
things that are desired for its own
sake virtue, money, etc. They are not just
means to happiness, but parts of happiness (for
that person).
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E.F. Carritt Criticisms of Utilitarianism
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Objection 1 Make no room for
justice Principle of utility does not care
about (1) fairness (2) merit or desert.
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Objection 2 Hierarchy of pleasures is
inconsistent with utilitarianism. P1 If
pleasure-F is higher than pleasure-G, it isn't
just because F is more pleasurable than G. P2
If pleasure-F is higher than pleasure-G, there
is something, other than the quantity of
pleasure, that is valuable about
F. -----------------------------------------------
- C Pleasure is not the only valuable thing.
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Objection 3 Keeping promises. Utilitarian
reason for keeping a promise it produces trust
in the long run, which is essential to
cooperation. But there is more to keeping a
promise. Example of two arctic explorers.
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Conclusion Utilitarianism has forgotten about
rights.
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Peter Singer Famine, Affluence, and Morality
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P1 If (a) something very bad is happening, and
(b) we can do something to prevent it, without
sacrificing anything of comparable moral
importance, we ought to do it. P2 Something
very bad is happening. (Children are
starving.) P3 We can do something to prevent
it, without sacrificing anything of comparable
moral importance. (e.g. Donate
money.) ------------------------------------------
----------- C We ought to do it. Donate
money. (Wrong not to donate money!)