"They suppose the same domineering pride and ingratitude to be the basis of his character; but they are also willing to believe, that his brain has received a sensible shock, and that his judgment, set afloat, is carried to every side, as it is pushed by the current of his humours and of his passions."
— Hume, David (1711-1776); with Rousseau, d'Alembert, and Walpole
Place of Publication
London
Publisher
Printed for T. Becket and P. A. De Hondt
Date
1766
Metaphor
"They suppose the same domineering pride and ingratitude to be the basis of his character; but they are also willing to believe, that his brain has received a sensible shock, and that his judgment, set afloat, is carried to every side, as it is pushed by the current of his humours and of his passions."
Metaphor in Context
There are others of my friends, who regard this whole affair in a more compassionate light, and consider Mr. Rousseau as an object rather of pity than of anger. They suppose the same domineering pride and ingratitude to be the basis of his character; but they are also willing to believe, that his brain has received a sensible shock, and that his judgment, set afloat, is carried to every side, as it is pushed by the current of his humours and of his passions. The absurdity of his belief is no proof of its insincerity. He imagines himself the sole important being in the universe: he fancies all mankind to be in a combination against him: his greatest benefactor, as hurting him most, is the chief object of his animosity: and though he supports all his whimsies by lies and fictions, this is so frequent a case with wicked men, who are in that middle state between sober reason and total frenzy, that it needs give no surprize to any body.
(p. 91)
(p. 91)
Categories
Provenance
Reading David Edmond's and John Eidinow's Rousseau's Dog (New York: Harper Perennial, 2007), 208.
Citation
Only 1 entry in ESTC (1766).
See A Concise and Genuine Account of the Dispute Between Mr. Hume and Mr. Rousseau: With the Letters That Passed Between Them During Their Controversy. As Also, the Letters of the Hon. Mr. Walpole, and Mr. D’Alambert, Relative to This Extraordinary Affair. Translated from the French. (London: Printed for T. Becket and P. A. De Hondt, near Surry-Street, in the Strand, 1766). <Link to ESTC><Link to >
Text from Oxford Text Archive.
See A Concise and Genuine Account of the Dispute Between Mr. Hume and Mr. Rousseau: With the Letters That Passed Between Them During Their Controversy. As Also, the Letters of the Hon. Mr. Walpole, and Mr. D’Alambert, Relative to This Extraordinary Affair. Translated from the French. (London: Printed for T. Becket and P. A. De Hondt, near Surry-Street, in the Strand, 1766). <Link to ESTC><Link to >
Text from Oxford Text Archive.
Date of Entry
01/11/2014
