Hume Paper

Description

For the first paper, you are to read the selection by Hume, “Of the Origin of Government” and discuss one particular point that Hume made in this selection.  This was written in the first half of the eighteenth century, and the language has changed substantially since then.  Thus you will probably have to read through it twice to get a solid grasp of his argument.  Once you have read it and had a chance to think about what Hume wrote, you will be able to focus in on a particular point.  You may indicate why you agree or disagree with what Hume had to say about that point.  Alternatively, you could extrapolate from the particular point to some broader point or to a narrower application of his point to some particular problem with governance.  Still another possibility would be to discuss that point’s relevance to the question of politics in a country that would not come into existence until several decades after Hume wrote this selection.  These are just examples, and I encourage students to come up with other approaches.  The main thing is that you are to react to what Hume wrote, not simply to summarize the selection, although you may wish to devote your first paragraph to a brief summary of the chapter.   Since all the information you need for this paper will be available from the selection, you will not need a bibliography, but whenever you refer to a specific fact, argument, or claim made in the selection, you will need to cite the specific page from which you obtained that information.  The same, of course, applies when you quote from it.  Do not quote excessively in any case.    The length of the paper is four hundred fifty (450) words, give or take fifty (50).  The paper is worth twenty (20) points:       Evidence of having read the whole Hume selection                                        6 points Evidence of having understood the chapter                                                     5 points Identification of the particular point of interest                                               2 points Discussion of your reaction to that point                                                         4 points Grammar and spelling                                                                                      2 points Format (double-spaced, ID number in upper right corner, length)              __1 point                                                                                                                         20 points