ABSTRACT
This chapter identifies the essential features of David Hume’s theory of knowledge and probability, and demonstrates how this theory is related to his doctrine of belief. It explains Hume's notion of the nature of philosophy, account for his notion of personal identity, as well as his notion of the nature of the human mind. Philosophical relations are regarded by Hume as being the only proper sources of human knowledge and probability. In Hume's consideration, probable reasoning is that kind of reasoning we constantly make use of in our enquiries, concerning matters of fact or concerning concrete reality. Since probability is also founded on belief in the broad sense, and lively ideas are integral aspects of the liveliness of impressions, it is logically sound to conclude that probability rests on belief, as lively ideas and impressions. Hume thinks that the principal concern of philosophy is to determine and analyse the basic elements of human nature, experimentally.
