Editing David Hume (section)

=== "Disease of the learned" ===
At around age 18, Hume made a philosophical discovery that opened up to him "a new Scene of Thought", inspiring him "to throw up every other Pleasure or Business to apply entirely to it".{{sfn|Hume|1993|p=346}} As he did not recount what this scene exactly was, commentators have offered a variety of speculations.{{Sfn|Johnson|1995|pp=8–9}} One prominent interpretation among contemporary Humean scholarship is that this new "scene of thought" was Hume's realisation that [[Francis Hutcheson (philosopher)|Francis Hutcheson]]'s theory of ''moral sense'' could be applied to the understanding of morality as well.

From this inspiration, Hume set out to spend a minimum of 10 years reading and writing. He soon came to the verge of a mental breakdown, first starting with a coldness{{mdash}}which he attributed to a "Laziness of Temper"{{mdash}}that lasted about nine months. [[Scurvy]] spots later broke out on his fingers, persuading Hume's physician to diagnose him with the "Disease of the Learned".<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Butler |first=Matthew |date=2020-08-28 |title=David Hume and the ‘Disease of the Learned’ – psychiatry in philosophy |url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/the-british-journal-of-psychiatry/article/david-hume-and-the-disease-of-the-learned-psychiatry-in-philosophy/4A930169D13E967597ADCA354A0965D5 |journal=The British Journal of Psychiatry |language=en |volume=217 |issue=3 |pages=524–524 |doi=10.1192/bjp.2020.76 |issn=0007-1250}}</ref><ref>{{Citation |last=Mossner |first=Ernest Campbell |title=Disease of the Learned |date=2001-02-22 |work=The Life of David Hume |pages=0 |editor-last=Mossner |editor-first=Ernest C. |url=https://academic.oup.com/book/26376/chapter-abstract/194705237?redirectedFrom=fulltext |access-date=2025-03-03 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-924336-5}}</ref>

Hume wrote that he "went under a Course of Bitters and Anti-Hysteric Pills", taken along with a pint of [[Bordeaux wine|claret]] every day. He also decided to have a more active life to better continue his learning.{{sfn|Mossner|1950|p=193}} His health improved somewhat, but in 1731, he was afflicted with a ravenous appetite and [[palpitations]]. After eating well for a time, he went from being "tall, lean and raw-bon'd" to being "sturdy, robust [and] healthful-like."<ref>Hume, David. 1932 [1734] "Letter to a [Dr George Cheyne]". pp. 13–15 in ''The Letters of David Hume'' 1, edited by [[J. Y. T. Greig]]. Oxford: [[Oxford University Press]]. {{ISBN|978-0-19-186158-1}}. {{doi|10.1093/actrade/9780199693245.book.1}}.</ref>{{sfn|Mossner|1980|p=[https://archive.org/details/lifeofdavidhume0000moss/page/204 204]}}<ref>Wright, John P. 2003. "Dr. George Cheyne, Chevalier Ramsay, and Hume's Letter to a Physician." ''[[Hume Studies]]'' 29(1):125–141. – via [[Project MUSE]]. {{doi|10.1353/hms.2011.0100}}.</ref> Indeed, Hume would become well known for being obese and having a fondness for good port and cheese, often using them as philosophical metaphors for his conjectures.{{sfn|Mossner|1980|p=[[iarchive:lifeofdavidhume0000moss/page/204|204]]}}