Subjectivity, Intersubjectivity and Corporality in the Humean Theory of Indirect Passions

Abstract

The aim of this paper is to study Hume’s theory of indirect passions. It intends to indicate the link with (a) an intersubjective field that acts as a framework for the affective development of the subject and (b) the irreducibly embodied nature of it. To do this, firstly, I broadly reconstruct Hume’s classification of the passions; secondly, I discuss the idea that indirect passions are simple impressions and I argue that this does not prevent Hume from being able to think of the surrounding conditions as causally necessary for the appearance of these impressions within the bundle of perceptions that make up the mind; and thirdly, I argue for the claim that these causal conditions are cognitive: as various cognitive mediations are incorporated, our passions acquire progressive degrees of sophistication that allow us to think about the refinement and gradual development of the individual’s affective (and cognitive) structure.