Friday, July 24, 2009

Hume--Moral distinctions not derived from Reason.

It has been observed, that nothing is ever present to the mind but its perceptions; and that all the actions of seeing, hearing, judging, loving, hating, and thinking, fall under this denomination.  The mind can never exert itself in any action, which we may not comprehend under the term of perception; and consequently that term is no less applicable to those judgments, by which we distinguish moral good and evil, than to every other operation of the mind.  To approve of one character, to condemn another, are only so many different perceptions.
 
So how do we get words? How do we go from the impression of airplane to the word "airplane"?  If all we have are perceptions how do we make any sense of anything?  How do we go from the perception of hate to a recognition that this perception I am feeling, this passion, is "hate".
 
I guess this is where reason comes in.
 
But how is reason inert? What does it mean for Reason to be inert.  What is Reason by the by...

Posted via email from Jim Nichols

No comments:

Post a Comment