Your corn is ripe today; mine will be so tomorrow. 'Tis profitable for us both, that I should labour with you today, and that you should aid me tomorrow.
David HumeRead
..when, in my philosophical disquisitions, I deny a providence and a future state, I undermine not the foundations of society, but advance principles, which they themselves, upon their own topics, if they argue consistently, must allow to be solid and satisfactory.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Hume argues that questioning the existence of divine providence or an afterlife does not weaken society but rather supports logical principles.
In this quote, David Hume asserts that by challenging the notions of providence and an afterlife, he is not rejecting the foundational beliefs of society but rather encouraging a philosophical inquiry that aligns with rational thinking. He believes that if society's constituents are to remain consistent in their arguments, they must accept the validity of his reasoning, thus fostering a deeper understanding of morality and ethics based on human experience rather than theological assumptions.
Themes
PhilosophyReasonSocietyProvidenceEthics
In practice
Example use cases
In a speech about critical thinking and rational discourse, you might use this quote to illustrate the importance of questioning established beliefs.
More from David Hume
All quotes →Eloquence, at its highest pitch, leaves little room for reason or reflection, but addresses itself entirely to the desires and affections, captivating the willing hearers, and subduing their understanding.
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All that belongs to human understanding, in this deep ignorance and obscurity, is to be sceptical, or at least cautious, and not to admit of any hypothesis whatever, much less of any which is supported by no appearance of probability.
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The great end of all human industry is the attainment of happiness
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There is a very remarkable inclination in human nature to bestow on external objects the same emotions which it observes in itself, and to find every where those ideas which are most present to it.
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To have recourse to the veracity of the supreme Being, in order to prove the veracity of our senses, is surely making a very unexpected circuit.
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