"The worst ever conceived by a man of genius": Hume's probability argument in A Treatise

Jeanne Peijnenburg; David Atkinson

"The worst ever conceived by a man of genius": Hume's probability argument in A Treatise

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Abstract

The probability argument in Hume’s A Treatise of Human Nature (Section 1.4.1) has been widely criticized, with David Stove calling it “the worst [argument] ever conceived by a man of genius”. We explain that the argument is open to two interpretations: one that is in accordance with probability theory and one that is not. We surmise that Hume failed to distinguish between the two, and that this contributed to the confusion surrounding the argument.

Original language	English
Title of host publication	Reason to Dissent
Subtitle of host publication	Proceedings of the 3rd European Conference on Argumentation
Editors	Catarina Dutilh Novaes, Henrike Jansen, Jan Albert van Laar, Bart Verheij
Publisher	College Publications
Pages	225-238
Volume	3
ISBN (Print)	978-1-84890-333-3
Publication status	Published - 2020

Publication series

Name	Studies in Logic and Argumentation
Volume	87

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Peijnenburg, J., & Atkinson, D. (2020). "The worst ever conceived by a man of genius": Hume's probability argument in A Treatise. In C. Dutilh Novaes, H. Jansen, J. A. van Laar, & B. Verheij (Eds.), Reason to Dissent: Proceedings of the 3rd European Conference on Argumentation (Vol. 3, pp. 225-238). (Studies in Logic and Argumentation ; Vol. 87). College Publications.

Peijnenburg, Jeanne ; Atkinson, David. / "The worst ever conceived by a man of genius" : Hume's probability argument in A Treatise. Reason to Dissent: Proceedings of the 3rd European Conference on Argumentation . editor / Catarina Dutilh Novaes ; Henrike Jansen ; Jan Albert van Laar ; Bart Verheij. Vol. 3 College Publications, 2020. pp. 225-238 (Studies in Logic and Argumentation ).

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author = "Jeanne Peijnenburg and David Atkinson",

year = "2020",

language = "English",

isbn = "978-1-84890-333-3",

volume = "3",

series = "Studies in Logic and Argumentation ",

publisher = "College Publications",

pages = "225--238",

editor = "{Dutilh Novaes}, {Catarina } and Henrike Jansen and {van Laar}, {Jan Albert} and Bart Verheij",

booktitle = "Reason to Dissent",

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"The worst ever conceived by a man of genius": Hume's probability argument in A Treatise. / Peijnenburg, Jeanne ; Atkinson, David.
Reason to Dissent: Proceedings of the 3rd European Conference on Argumentation . ed. / Catarina Dutilh Novaes; Henrike Jansen; Jan Albert van Laar; Bart Verheij. Vol. 3 College Publications, 2020. p. 225-238 (Studies in Logic and Argumentation ; Vol. 87).

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Chapter › Academic › peer-review

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A2 - van Laar, Jan Albert

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PB - College Publications

ER -

"The worst ever conceived by a man of genius": Hume's probability argument in A Treatise

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