Hume in 90 Minutes

Strathern is a cynical historian of philosophy, and this production gives him a chance to be his most sardonic. Even the narrator sounds sarcastic. I loved it.

It didn’t take him long to dispose of Hume’s philosophy, so he could spend the rest of the time on interesting trivia about Hume and the 18th Century Continental society he lived in. A strange society, to be sure – and one perfectly suited to Strathern’s rapier wit.

Hume suffered from mental instability all his life, and he had at least one episode where he saw saints and demons and tried to kill himself. This immediately brings up the question “What was the nature of these illusions?” since Hume believed sensory input was all we could be sure of – since everything else (the continuity of objects, the sensing self, causality) were all conjecture. His reasoning was impeccable, and could not be refuted – and so, for all practical purposes he was ignored.

The German philosophers who came after him, including Kant and Hegel, proceeded to erect elaborate philosophical systems – in the case of Hegel, so elaborate some have wondered if Hegel understood his own philosophy. Only Nietzsche had the nerve to call their bluff – and promptly went insane himself – but before that happened, he had made Hume respectable again. And ever since he has been more-or-less respectable.

20th Century Science has made him completely respectable, because relativity and quantum mechanics have shown that our common-sense perceptions of the world, those expressed by Newtonian physics, are wildly inaccurate.

If you could sum up Hume in 90 Minutes in three words, what would they be?
aka Cliff Notes

Would you recommend Nietzsche in 90 Minutes to your friends? Why or why not?
Yes - I've listened to each book in the series about a major philosopher that is available on Audible. Strathern's books don't have the analytical depth found in Will Durant's "The Story of Philosophy" books, but he does a good job summarizing each philosopher's biography, major philosophical points, and criticisms. Additionally, Strathern's breadth is broader than Durant's in that he covers a greater number of philosophers. I believe that the time spent listening to these books has been well-spent.

My reviews for each book in the series about a philosopher are identical.

What about Robert Whitfield’s performance did you like?
Voice is clear, well-modulated, and easily understood, even at 1 1/2 speed.