Hume's Causal Theory of the Mind

Note that Hume's goal is to give a complete causal theory of the mind.

Book 1, Part 1:

Section 1: The Picture Theory of Ideas

1. What is the relation between simple ideas and simple impressions?

Hume's causal first principle.

2. What is the relation between simple ideas and complex ideas?

3. What is the evidence that impressions cause ideas?

4. The exception: the missing shade of blue. Are there other exceptions?

5. Important conclusion: No innate ideas.

Section 2: Impressions of Reflection

Section 3: Memory and Imagination

1. According to Hume, what is the difference between ideas of memory and ideas of imagination?

Hume's second causal principle gives the constraints on memory.

2. Imagination is not constrained like memory? Does imagination operate outside causal constraints?

Section 4: The Causal Constraints on Imagination

1. The third causal principle: The three kinds of association in imagination: resemblance, contiguity, and cause and effect.

Section 5: The Seven Philosophical Relations

Resemblance, identity, space and time, quantity or number, quality (in degrees), contrariety, and cause and effect.

1. How do we acquire these ideas? We return to this after the discussion of abstract objects.

Section 6: Substances and Modes

1. For Hume, which are more fundamental?

Section 7: Abstract Objects: The First Important Empirical Test of Hume's Theory

1. According to Hume, what are abstract ideas? Are they just particular ideas? Some ideas are particular in their nature but general in their representation. What does this mean?

2. The fourth causal element. What is the idea of 1000?

3. Hume's three arguments for his account of abstract objects: (a) no distinguishing a line from its length. Is this true?

(b) the argument from impressions and the Explanatory Circle.

(c) the absurdity argument. How persuasive is Hume's example of a triangle? What about other examples? Could we have an idea of dog that did not have determinate color?

4. Some ideas are the product of distinctions of reason.

5. Another problem for Hume's account of abstract ideas: The Chicken-Egg Problem. Consider the idea of resemblance. What other ideas does it arise for? How would Hume respond?

The Non-Transparent Mind

On Hume's account, what aspects of the mind are transparent (evident to the subject) and what aspects are not? [Hint: If Hume must do experiments to enable us to recognize that his theory is true, then the theory must be about aspects of the mind that are not transparent?]

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