David Hume's Political Philosophy: A Theory of Commercial Modernization

Abstract

Hume Studies Volume 28, Number 2, November 2002, pp. 247-270 David Hume's Political Philosophy: A Theory of Commercial Modernization CARL WENNERLIND Introduction While David Hume explicitly elaborated on the development of a modern commercial society in the Political Discourses and the History of England, it is more difficult to discern whether Hume had a specific time period or societal transformation in mind when he laid out his political philosophy in A Treatise of Human Nature. In the Treatise, Hume unambiguously states that he did not believe in the existence of a pre-social stage of human development— he considered such elaborations mere philosophical fiction.1 The lack of an abrupt demarcation between the pre-social and the social in Hume's thought makes his political philosophy incongruent with an original contract or a first social formation. In this sense, Hume's social theory might be considered a foundational theory for all human coexistence2 and the Treatise would thus read as an ahistorical text. However, it is plausible that Hume was instead providing a discussion of a particular historical transformation—that of commercial modernization—by emphasizing the construction of a new set of social institutions and ignoring or downplaying the social forms that came before. This paper challenges the ahistorical interpretations and suggests that Hume was indeed providing a philosophical elaboration of the Carl Wennerlind is Term Assistant Professor, Department of Economics, Barnard College, 3009 Broadway, New York, NY 10027, USA. e-mail: cwennerl@barnard.edu 248 Carl Wennerlind central conventions of the nascent commercial society.3 This argument emerges from a recent reinterpretation of Hume's treatment of the conventions in Book 3 of the Treatise.4 Whereas most scholars interpret Hume as theorizing the conventions of property, exchange, and promises, I argue that Hume is discussing property, exchange, and money. Considering that these three conventions constitute the core of modern society and Hume describes them as being formed by the middling sorts in an evolutionary process, it is reasonable to conclude that Hume was in fact theorizing the process whereby a unified modern commercial society emerged from the scattered remnants of various medieval social forms. The plausibility of this interpretation of the Treatise is then gauged by juxtaposing it to Hume's historical account of England in the History. We find that, in an important sense, the History describes the process of commercial modernization within the parameters set out in the Treatise, which strongly suggests that Hume's political philosophy is primarily applicable to the modern commercial society, and not to an ahistorical social form. Property, Markets, and Money Writing in the aftermath of the agricultural and financial revolutions and during the midst of an astonishing expansion in national and international commerce, Hume was one of the earliest modern thinkers to theorize the deep structure of the emerging commercial order. Hume supported commercial expansion as he thought it would promote politeness, prosperity, liberty, and civilization. He argues in the Treatise that commerce extends the division of labor, improves technology and techniques, and stabilizes society. He elaborates further on the importance of commerce in the essays "Of Commerce" and "Of Refinement in the Arts," suggesting that its most important benefit is that it stimulates the industriousness of people and enlarges the "stock of labor ." Since the stock of labor constitutes "all real power and riches" (Essays, 288) and "men and commodities are the real strength of any community" (293), the expansion of industry is the basis of "the greatness of the state, and the happiness of its subjects" (255). The "greatness" and "happiness" refers not only to improvements in the standard of living associated with capital expansion, but also to a general societal improvement. For Hume, industry— systematic, methodical, and productive work—plays the role of social and moral police, as well as contributes new vigor to the mind, makes people more sociable, increases humanity, and limits drink and debauchery and other appetites "nourished by ease and idleness" (272). As a civilizing force, industry also contributes to public order by making men more dependent on each other, Hume Studies David Hume's Political Philosophy 249 thus increasing stability by softening men's tempers, making "factions less inveterate, revolutions...