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Description
As stated in the title, the paper reflects upon the importance of taste in David Hume and, particularly, Adam Smith’s Moral Philosophy.
The paper starts by summarizing the importance of Aesthetics within the Scottish Enlightenment. Following the philosophy of Lord Shaftesbury and Francis Hutcheson, the paper posits that 18th century Scotland lived a platonic twist, where the good emerged as something altogether beautiful and attractive, distinct from any «epicurean» calculation.
Next, the paper examines the idea of taste in Hume’s Treatise of Human Nature and An Enquiry Concerning the Principles of Morals, in order to connect both works with the author’s reflections on the «delicacy of taste» in his Of the Delicacy of Taste and Passion as well as his Of the Standard of Taste. The paper concludes that the figure of the «critic», as posited in the latter essay, concerned Hume’s Moral Philosophy and thus points out how he/she (i.e., the said «critic») must guide the taste of the rest (i.e., the majority) of the people.
The paper then shows how Adam Smith’s The Theory of Moral Sentiments inherited the connection between the beautiful and the good, while partaking of the idea of «moral criticism» (TMS III.i.5; see also TMS VII.iv.6). The paper draws attention to the neglected figure of the «man of taste» (also, the «great leader in science and taste») as he/she who “lead[s] and direct[s] our own [sentiments]” (TMS I.i.IV.3). The paper therefore deduces, following Griswold (1999), that The Theory of Moral Sentiments took moral education to be, ultimately, an aesthetic education. In this sense, the paper inquires into the connection between the idea of «science» and the beauty of utility, clarifying how, among other things, real beauty came with a correct understanding of the true means of achieving private, and public, happiness.
| Organization | University of Navarra |
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