David Hume
David Hume was born on May 7, 1711 in Edinburgh, Scotland, into a middle class family. His father died while he was young and left him with wage of 50 pounds a year. When he was twelve years old he went to Edinburgh University but dropped out three years later without receiving a degree. Hume had a plan to be a "literary hero" instead of practicing law like he was supposed to do, so he spent the next three years of his life reading Greek and Roman classics. In 1729 he already had a plan for his first literary work. In 1734 he moved to France where he was able to live more comfortably with his 50 pounds a year and could study and read more than ever before.
In 1739, A Treatise of Human Nature was published after Hume returned to England with expectations of fame. Hume was very disappointed when the public generally ignored his writing. Hume turned to writing political essays which were more successful, and applied to be an ethics professor at Edinburgh University. Although easily qualified for the position, he was denied the job because of his supposed Atheism.
After this, he turned around and rewrote A Treatise of Human Nature in order to clarify some of his views that offended people. His revision was titled An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding. In 1751 Hume published An Enquiry Concerning the Principles of Morals. This writing was not an instant success, and after serving briefly in the military, he began to write Dialogues Concerning Natural Religion, and The History of England, which was published in six volumes from 1754 to 1762. Dialogues Concerning Natural Religion was not published until three years after his death in 1779. The History of England provided him with the literary ...