Hume 在 1739-40 匿名出版了 A Treatise of Human Nature。這本書在當時沒有受到好評，使得Hume大感失望。之後 Hume 將 Treatise 加以改寫，他改變了論文原本的架構，使其更清晰，保留了裡面的主要論點並加以精煉。在這些重新改寫本裡，有兩本著作特別有影響力，分別是 An Enquiry concerning Human Understanding (1748) 和 An Enquiry concerning the Principles of Morals (1751)。前者是 Hume 的知識論與形上學，後者是 Hume 的道德哲學。這門課將以 An Enquiry concerning Human Understanding (1748) 和 Treatise 的 Book 1, Of the Understanding (1739) 作為閱讀材料，以了解 Hume 在涉及知識論和形上學領域中的幾個議題的主張和理論，包括因果關係、歸納的問題、人格同一、以及外在世界懷疑論等。

Hume anonymously published A Treatise of Human Nature in 1739-40. The book was not well received at the time, leaving Hume disappointed. Hume later rewrote Treatise. He changed the original structure of the paper to make it clearer, retaining and refining the main arguments. Among these re-adaptations, two works were particularly influential, An Inquiry concerning Human Understanding (1748) and An Inquiry concerning the Principles of Morals (1751). The former is Hume’s theory of knowledge and metaphysics, and the latter is Hume’s moral philosophy. This course will use An Inquiry concerning Human Understanding (1748) and Treatise's Book 1, Of the Understanding (1739) as reading materials to understand Hume's claims and theories on several issues involving epistemology and metaphysics, including causation, problems of induction, personal identity, and external world skepticism.

Hume, D. 1748. An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding and Other Writings. (edited by Stephen Buckle in 2007). Cambridge University Press.
Norton, D. & Jacqueline Taylor (eds.). 2009. The Cambridge Companion to Hume. Cambridge University Press.
Russell, P. (ed.) 2016. The Oxford Handbook of Hume. OUP.

Hume, D. 1748. An Inquiry Concerning Human Understanding and Other Writings. (edited by Stephen Buckle in 2007). Cambridge University Press.
Norton, D. & Jacqueline Taylor (eds.). 2009. The Cambridge Companion to Hume. Cambridge University Press.
Russell, P. (ed.) 2016. The Oxford Handbook of Hume. OUP.