Abstract

This chapter is concerned with the relationship between Hume's treatment of the idea of existence and his conception of belief. It also includes a contrast with Kant on the former point. It is divided into three parts. The first examines Hume's thesis that the ‘simple conception’ of _x_ and the belief in its existence differ only in the ‘manner of conception’ not the content of what is conceived. The second analyzes Hume's claim that this difference in manner of conception must be understood as a difference in force and vivacity. It includes an account of Reid's criticisms of this view, which has provided the basis for most subsequent criticisms. The third discusses an important note in which Hume criticizes the traditional distinction between conception, judgment, and reason, and sketches a possible Kantian response to this passage.