Description: It seems an unaccountable pleasure, which the spectators of a well-written tragedy receive from sorrow, terror, anxiety, and other passions, that are in themselves disagreeable and uneasy. The more they are touched and affected, the more are they delighted with the spectacle; and as soon as the uneasy passions cease to operate, the piece is at an end. One scene of full joy and contentment and security is the utmost, that any composition of this kind can bear...
Description: This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery.
Description: David Hume is unquestionably one of history's most important philosophers, and Of the Standard of Taste is his seminal work on the subject of aesthetics. No artist, or art lover, should be unfamiliar with the ideas presented in this work. Hume's characteristic straightforward writing style is masterfully utilized in confronting the difficult questions of aesthetics and addressing them in the systematic, rational method of one of the greatest minds of the Enl...
Description: SOME People are subject to a certain delicacy of passion, which makes them extremely sensible to all the accidents of life, and gives them a lively joy upon every prosperous event,as well as a piercing grief, when they meet with misfortunes and adversity. Favours and good offices easily engage their friendship; while the smallest injury provokes their resentment. Any honour or mark of distinction elevates them above measure; but they are as sensibly touched ...
Description: David Hume (26 April 1711 – 25 August 1776) was a Scottish philosopher, economist, historian and a key figure in the history of Western philosophy and the Scottish Enlightenment. Hume is often grouped with John Locke, George Berkeley, and a handful of others as a British Empiricist. Hume was one of the first philosophers of the modern era to produce a thoroughly naturalistic philosophy; according to Hume, his work could do for philosophy what Isaac Newton's ...
Description: Of Superstition and Enthusiasm by David Hume That the corruption of the best things produces the worst, is grown into a maxim, and is commonly proved, among other instances, by the pernicious effects of superstition and enthusiasm, the corruptions of true religion. These two species of false religion, though both pernicious, are yet of a very different, and even of a contrary nature. The mind of man is subject to certain unaccountable terrors and apprehens...
Description: Originally published in 1955, Eugene Rotwein's collection of David Hume's economic writings has become the criterion by which to measure studies of Hume's thinking on economics. Rotwein, in his extended introduction, masterfully examines the connection between Hume's various writings—economic, political, philosophical, and historical. This edition is graced with a new introduction by Margaret Schabas
Description: It is difficult for a man to speak long of himself without vanity; therefore, I shall be short. It may be thought an instance of vanity that I pretend at all to write my life; but this Narrative shall contain little more than the History of my Writings; as, indeed, almost all my life has been spent in literary pursuits and occupations. The first success of most of my writings was not such as to be an object of vanity. I was born the 26th of April 1711, old s...
Description: Principal Doctrines and Letter to Menoeceus Epicurus Translated by Robert Drew Hicks Epicurus (341–270 BC) was an ancient Greek philosopher as well as the founder of the school of philosophy called Epicureanism. Only a few fragments and letters of Epicurus's 300 written works remain. Much of what is known about Epicurean philosophy derives from later followers and commentators. For Epicurus, the purpose of philosophy was to attain the happy, tranquil life, c...
Description: A naturalist account of the causes, effects, and historical development of religious belief. The development of religion is argued to be rooted in emotion, particularly fear and the need for a sense of control over our lives and of the future. Intolerance, dishonesty, and bizarre moral doctrines are the outcome
Description: This volume contains two classic essays by David Hume: On Suicide and On the Immortality of the Soul
Description: Rene Descartes was a French philosopher who spent most of his life in the Dutch Republic during the Golden Age. Known as the Father of Modern Philosophy, Descartes influenced many of the great philosophers who followed him. This edition of Descartes’ Discourse on the Method includes a table of contents. Show more Show less
Description: Benedict de Spinoza was one of the great rationalists of 17th century philosophy, he helped lay the groundwork for the 18th century Enlightenment and modern biblical criticism. His correspondences help shed light on his ethical opinions and positions. Required reading for those who wish a deeper understanding of the writings of Benedict de Spinoza.
Description: This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery
Description: This is a short extract from a book by a Christian missionary which gives some historical observations on the Yezidi people of northern Iraq. For more information on the Yezidi, refer to Devil Worship: The Sacred Books and Traditions of the Yezidiz, which references this article heavily. The Rev. Badger didn't get as close to the Yezidi as Isya Joseph did. His access was limited because he was a missionary, rather than an anthropologist. However, there are...