Four Dissertations. I. The Natural History of Religion. II. Of the Passions. III. Of Tragedy. IV. Of the Standard of Taste. London: A. Millar, 1757.

Descripción

First edition, Chuo 45, issue with the seven-page Dedication to John Home. In 1755 Hume prepared a collection of four pieces, one of which was on geometry, which after taking advice he decided to withdraw. Because the bookseller needed more material to make a volume, Hume gave him as a substitute two unpublished pieces on suicide and immortality. The complete collection, which commentators now conveniently call Five Dissertations, contained these five items: (1) The Natural History of Religion , (2) Of the Passions , (3) Of Tragedy , (4) Of Suicide , (5) Of the Immortality of the Soul . Early copies of the work circulated, and the controversial nature of the last two essays forced Hume s publisher to physically remove them from the printed versions. Hume then added Of the Standard of Taste in their place, and the work was retitled Four Dissertations . Two passages within the Natural History of Religion were also altered, although it is not clear if this occurred before or during the removal of the essays on suicide and immortality. Some copies contain a dedication to John Home, which praises Home s tragic play Douglas; controversy surrounding Home s play prompted Hume to cancel the dedication on the eve of publication. Four Dissertations was published only once; the four essays themselves were incorporated into various locations within Essays and Treatises on Several Subjects' (James Fieser, A Bibliography of Hume s Writings and Early Responses, Thoemmes Press, 2003, pp. 40-1). PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION: 12mo, [iv], vii, [i], 240 pp., contemporary calf, rubbed and scored, spine ruled gilt in compartments with red morocco label, nicked at head, title-page repaired, some marginal staining towards the edges, a few corners creased, occasional reading marks early on, a reasonable copy overall. N° de ref. del artículo ABE-1642261444158

Contactar al vendedor

Denunciar este artículo

Detalles bibliográficos