ABSTRACT

David Hume (1711–1776) believed a ‘confederacy of authors’, brought together by the notoriously pugnacious William Warburton (1698–1779), were his most consistent and scurrilous critics. Warburton and his ‘School’ were Hume’s bêtes noires and embodied so much of what he fought against. Only there is reason to believe that the ‘Warburtonian School’ was more a useful fiction than a historical reality. The following deep dive into Humeana and the ‘stuff of anecdote’ digs up substantial conclusions about Hume’s philosophical project and context. Any glorifying picture of Hume admirably ignoring sustained ‘Warburtonian’ name-calling is not an accurate description of the early reception of his writings. Hume did respond – at least, occasionally, privately and publicly. Moreover, the ‘Warburtonian School’ does not seem to exist – at least, it did not exist if it is taken to refer to a coherent group of writers, numbering more than two, concerned with attacking Hume. The response to Hume of ‘Warburtonians’ who can be identified was varied, disparate, and often positive. Warburton even came to like Hume’s historical writings. Hume’s claim that such a School existed may have led to the post hoc creation of the School in the minds of late eighteenth- and nineteenth-century commentators.

摘要

大卫·休谟（David Hume，1711-1776 年）认为，由臭名昭著的好斗威廉·沃伯顿（William Warburton，1698-1779 年）召集的“作家联盟”是他最始终如一、最下流的批评者。沃伯顿和他的“学校”是休谟最讨厌的东西，体现了他所反对的许多东西。只是有理由相信“沃伯顿学派”与其说是真实的历史，不如说是有用的虚构。下面深入探讨休谟那和“轶事”，挖掘关于休谟的哲学计划和背景的实质性结论。任何关于休谟令人钦佩地忽视持续的“沃伯顿式”辱骂的美化画面都不能准确描述他的作品的早期接受度。休谟确实做出了回应——至少，偶尔，私下和公开。此外，“沃伯顿学派”似乎并不存在——至少，如果它指的是一群连贯的作家，数量超过两人，他们关注的是攻击休谟，那么它就不存在了。可以确定的“沃伯顿主义者”对休谟的反应是多种多样的，完全不同的，而且往往是积极的。沃伯顿甚至喜欢上了休谟的历史著作。休谟声称存在这样一个学派，这可能导致了在 18 世纪晚期和 19 世纪评论家的脑海中对这个学派的临时创造。