# Part I: Of Pride and Humility explained — A Treatise of Human Nature

> Chapter companion for A Treatise of Human Nature by David Hume.

## What happens

This chapter introduces the passions of pride and humility, establishing that their common object is the self. Hume argues that pride and humility are simple and uniform impressions, and that their causes are numerous and varied, including virtues, vices, beauty, deformity, wealth, poverty, and external objects. The chapter lays the groundwork for a systematic examination of these passions, their causes, and their relation to the self.

## Themes in this chapter

### Passions and the Self

The chapter's central focus is on pride and humility as passions that have the self as their necessary and primary object.

### Empiricism and the Primacy of Impressions

Hume grounds his analysis in the direct experience of impressions, treating pride and humility as simple impressions that are known through introspection.

## Character check-ins

### David Hume

The author and primary investigator, systematically analyzing the passions of pride and humility.

## Key lines

> The object of pride and humility is the self.

Pride and humility are always directed at oneself.

_This establishes the fundamental orientation of these passions._

> The causes of pride and humility are numerous and varied.

Many different things can make us feel proud or humble.

_This sets the stage for a detailed investigation into the specific causes._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/a_treatise_of_human_nature_se/chapters/part-i-of-pride-and-humility
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/a_treatise_of_human_nature_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/a_treatise_of_human_nature_se/chapters