Work

"The worst ever conceived by a man of genius" : Hume's probability argument in A Treatise

Year: 2020

Type: conference-paper

Abstract: The probability argument in Hume’s A Treatise of Human Nature (Section 1.4.1) has been widely criticized, with David Stove calling it “the worst [argument] ever conceived by a man of genius”. We explain that the argument is open to two interpretations: one that is in accordance with probability theory and one that is not. We surmise that Hume failed to distinguish between the two, and that this contributed to the confusion surrounding the argument.

Source: University of Groningen research database (University of Groningen / Centre for Information Technology)

Authors: Jeanne Peijnenburg, David Atkinson

Language: English

Topic: Hume's philosophy and hair distribution

Subfield: General Social Sciences

Field: Social Sciences

Domain: Social Sciences

Open Access status: green

Funder: Erasmus Universiteit Rotterdam

OpenAlex ID: W3092001590

FWCI:

Cites:

Cited by:

Related to: 10