“ Does nature, whose instincts in men are all simple, embrace such complicated and artificial objects, and create a rational creature, without trusting anything to the operation of his reason? ”
David Hume, An Enquiry Concerning the Principles of Morals (1751). copy citation
| Author | David Hume |
|---|---|
| Source | An Enquiry Concerning the Principles of Morals |
| Topic | trust instinct |
| Date | 1751 |
| Language | English |
| Reference | |
| Note | |
| Weblink | http://www.gutenberg.org/files/4320/4320-h/4320-h.htm |
Context
“These words too, inheritance and contract, stand for ideas infinitely complicated; and to define them exactly, a hundred volumes of laws, and a thousand volumes of commentators, have not been found sufficient. Does nature, whose instincts in men are all simple, embrace such complicated and artificial objects, and create a rational creature, without trusting anything to the operation of his reason?
But even though all this were admitted, it would not be satisfactory. Positive laws can certainly transfer property. It is by another original instinct, that we recognize the authority of kings and senates, and mark all the boundaries of their jurisdiction?”
source
