Reception of Francis Hutcheson’s Views in Immanuel Kant’s Philosophy of the Power of Judgment

The following dissertation aims at presenting the dependencies between the aesthetic theory by the Scottish philosopher Francis Hutcheson and the critic philosophy by Immanuel Kant. Those issues seem to be worth discussing in the light of some new research into the British aesthetics: particularly, for its significance in the field of newly created domain that aesthetic has become after Alexander Baumgarten and, mostly, after critical philosophy by Immanuel Kant. The comparison of the views held by Hutcheson and Kant shows the importance of the theory of beauty presented by the Scottish philosopher that results not only from his acknowledging the epistemological significance of an aesthetic experience and accepting that it is conditioned by disinterestedness of perception. What is important is Hutcheson’s place in the evolution of the concept of aesthetics, which took place in the 18th century and which was crowned by Kant and his Critique of the Power of Judgment.

Benevolence and Abhorrence of Incest (the Case of Francis Hutcheson)

В статье реконструированы представления Фрэнсиса Хатчесона об истоках и моральном статусе запрета на инцест. Интерпретация этого запрета создает затруднения для любой теории морали, которая отождествляет ее содержание с непричинением вреда и помощью другому человеку. Степень морального осуждения инцеста не соответствует его относительной безвредности для других (в категориях, используемых Хатчесоном, участники инцестуальных отношений не проявляют явного «недостатка благожелательности»). Автор показывает, как Хатчесон, обсуждая универсальность морального чувства и моральные препятствия для заключения брака, пытается редуцировать «отвращение к инцесту» к благожелательным переживаниям. The paper reconstructs Francis Hutcheson’s view on the moral status of incest and origins of the incest prohibition. The phenomenon of incest creates problems for every theory of morality that identifies its content with other-regarding requirements. The intensity of moral blame that incestuous behavior faces is not consistent with its relative harmlessness in comparison with violence or refusal to help (in Hutcheson’s terms, participants of incestuous relationships do not express ‘want of benevolence’). The author shows how Hutcheson reduces the ‘abhorrence of incest’ to benevolent affections in his discussions of the universality of moral sense and moral impediments of marriage.

2. Morality

‘Morality’ considers Hume’s moral thought as developed in Book Three of A Treatise of Human Nature, various of his essays, and, especially, An Enquiry concerning the Principles of Morals. Hume engages with the moral sense theory of Francis Hutcheson in the Treatise. He then turned to essay writing, in relation especially to the essays of Joseph Addison in The Spectator. This turn to essay writing sees Hume modify the purely ‘anatomical’ philosophy of the Treatise in favour of a more practical engagement with the morality of common life. In his work, Hume considered the damage done to natural moral sentiments by religion, and by Christianity in particular. Hume displayed a lack of confidence in moral progress, and showed a sense of the persistence and pervasiveness of human unhappiness. Hume also made an important contribution to aesthetics.

“As Different . . . as Light Is from Darkness”

This chapter argues that the clergy’s overall perspective on political resistance remained consistent, even as political loyalties shifted with the Declaration of Independence in 1776. John Witherspoon, the leading clergyman to publicly support independence, remained consistent in his rejection of political absolutism and his belief in the doctrine of resistance. He did not agree with the perspective of Thomas Paine and other political radicals but argued for resistance along the lines of his own theological tradition. Support for political independence, it is argued, should not be viewed as signaling a broader shift in Witherspoon’s ethical and philosophical views. He did not embrace a secular understanding of moral virtue held by philosophers like Francis Hutcheson. His moral philosophy and approach to moral questions remained consistent with his own theological tradition, and no major shift needs to be asserted in this regard.

Belleza, Probabilidad y Adaptación en la Estética de Francis Hutcheson

El presente artículo propone una aproximación a la estética de Francis Hutcheson diferente a la tradicional, la cual se centraba en la identificación de la belleza como experiencia del sujeto y en la evaluación del impacto de este subjetivismo sobre la generación posterior. Como alternativa se acentúan los aspectos relacionales de su noción de belleza, en la que la estructura del objeto y la respuesta del sujeto no se pueden separar. Para ello el autor se centra especialmente en la poco estudiada Sección V del Tratado I de Una investigación sobre el origen de nuestras ideas de belleza y virtud. En ella la fórmula de la uniformidad en la diversidad, la matemática de la probabilidad y la adaptación de los seres vivos a sus condiciones de vida justifican la hipótesis de Dios diseñador, lo que sitúa a la belleza en el centro del pensamiento de Hutcheson y define una nueva aproximación a su influjo sobre las generaciones posteriores, sobre todo Adam Smith.

Sociability, Censorship and the Limits of Ridicule from Shaftesbury to Hutcheson

This chapter discusses Sensus Communis: An Essay on the Freedom of Wit and Humour. The Sensus Communis became the urtext of the ridicule debate for the remainder of the century. The chapter situates Sensus Communis in its political context and shows how Shaftesbury's commitment to ridicule received an early test when the High Churchman Henry Sacheverell used a sermon at St Paul's Cathedral to mock Whig pieties concerning toleration. By agreeing with Whig efforts to suppress Sacheverell's sermonizing through parliamentary impeachment, Shaftesbury conceded that the coercive power of the state was sometimes needed to create space for the more sociable exchanges he preferred. The chapter concludes in the 1720s with two of Shaftesbury's most influential early readers: Bernard Mandeville and Francis Hutcheson. The chapter shows that it was in the disagreement between these two philosophers (one a champion of Shaftesbury, the other his most trenchant critic), that the significance of ridicule to the debate on sociability comes truly into focus.

Adam Smith: algunos antecedentes olvidados

Adam Smith was a successful writer in his life time and he is still well-known as one of the best. Nevertheless, I would like to highlight the fact that most of the ideas that made Smith famous, were already written long time ago and they were also spread widely in his academic world. In some cases, the authors managed to hide their sources of inspiration; in other cases the writers ignored the previous knowledge about their specific field. This can be applied to the doctrine of the School of Salamanca, that arrived at the Scottish Enlightenment authors (Gershom Carmichael, Francis Hutcheson and Adam Smith) throughout the Dutch and German philosophers: Hugo Grotius and Samuel Pufendorf. Key words: Adam Smith, Scholastics, liberalism, School of Salamanca, Grotius. JEL Classification: B12. Resumen: Adam Smith fue un exitoso publicista en su tiempo, y mantiene hasta hoy esa fama de los grandes creadores. Sin embargo, veremos cómo una gran parte de la doctrina que hizo famoso a Smith ya estaba escrita desde bastantes años antes, y era suficientemente bien conocida en su entorno académico. En algunos casos, los autores se ocupan de ocultar hábilmente sus fuentes de inspiración; en otros, ellos mismos ignoran los antecedentes doctrinales de su pensamiento que, tras años (y siglos) de éxito, han podido quedar misteriosamente en el olvido. Lo que sería aplicable al corpus doctrinal de la Escuela de Salamanca: planteamos aquí cómo pudo llegar a las cátedras escocesas de Filosofía Moral —donde enseñaba Adam Smith— a través de un largo recorrido que tendría como principales protagonistas el holandés Hugo Grocio, el alemán Samuel Pufendorf, y los maestros inmediatos de Smith en Glasgow como Gershom Carmichael o Francis Hutcheson. Palabras clave: Adam Smith, Escuela de Salamanca, Escolástica, Liberalismo, Hugo Grocio. Clasificación JEL: B12.