Hume (1711–1776)

Abstract

Hume’s political philosophy consists of a theory of justice and property and a theory of political obligation. These theories were not a response to a particular political event or an attempt to solve a single political problem. Moreover, the works in which they appear — the Treatise on Human Nature and the Enquiry Concerning the Principles of Morals — are comprehensive works of philosophy, and they give us little indication of Hume’s practical political concerns. However, Hume also published a series of political essays in which he undertook an analysis of aspects of British politics since the Revolution of 1688, and they provide some insight into the relationship between Hume’s political philosophy and the practice of politics.