The Moral and Political Philosophy of David Hume

FAIN: FA-51762-05

Sharon R. Krause
President and Fellows of Harvard College (Cambridge, MA 02138-3800)

Why do we care about acting justly, and why *should* we care about it? What is the relationship between the norms that guide us and the motives that animate us in politics? This project explores the moral and political philosophy of David Hume as a resource for illuminating the relationship between norms, motives, and political action in liberal-democratic polities. It draws on Hume’s account of moral sentiment for the purpose of advancing understanding within political theory about the nature of judgments about justice and the sources of political agency that sustain just action.