Here are the details for the first USyd Postgrad Work in Progress talk for the semester.
Speaker: Gabriel Watts When David Hume sent a copy of his yet-to-be-published *Treatise* (1739-40) to his friend Michael Ramsey he advised that Ramsey read Nicolas Malebranche’s *The Search After Truth* (1674-5) in order to better understand the "metaphysical" parts. Hume’s philosophical debts to Malebranche are obvious to anyone who looks, yet there has been little investigation into the nature of Hume’s pre-*Treatise* engagement with Malebranche. In this talk I examine a passage from Hume’s 1734 ‘Letter to a Physician’ in which Hume compares the “rapturous admiration” of “French Mystics” to the “enthusiasm” accompanying his “profound reflections”. I explore Malebranche’s close connection to French Mysticism and in particular show how Malebranche’s philosophy both encourages a philosophical form of religious abandonment while also providing a naturalistic critique of the psychology of enthusiasm. Against this background, Hume’s claim that he was unable to sincerely enter this sentiment provides a key insight into his early engagement with both Malebranche and religious thought generally. Time: 4:30pm, Mon Aug 5 Location: Philosophy Common Room, Main Quad, University of Sydney Hope to see you all there, Simon Varey Postgraduate Colloquium Co-ordinator
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