The Infidel and the Professor, Dennis C. Rasmussen
The Infidel and the Professor, Dennis C. Rasmussen
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The Infidel and the Professor
David Hume, Adam Smith, and the Friendship That Shaped Modern Thought

Author: Dennis C. Rasmussen

Narrator: Keith Sellon-Wright

Unabridged: 10 hr 7 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Tantor Media

Published: 05/22/2018


Synopsis

The story of the greatest of all philosophical friendships—and how it influenced modern thought

David Hume is widely regarded as the most important philosopher ever to write in English, but during his lifetime he was attacked as "the Great Infidel" for his skeptical religious views and deemed unfit to teach the young. In contrast, Adam Smith was a revered professor of moral philosophy, and is now often hailed as the founding father of capitalism. Remarkably, the two were best friends for most of their adult lives, sharing what Dennis Rasmussen calls the greatest of all philosophical friendships. The Infidel and the Professor is the first book to tell the fascinating story of the friendship of these towering Enlightenment thinkers—and how it influenced their world-changing ideas.

The book follows Hume and Smith's relationship from their first meeting in 1749 until Hume's death in 1776. It describes how they commented on each other's writings, supported each other's careers and literary ambitions, and advised each other on personal matters, most notably after Hume's quarrel with Jean-Jacques Rousseau. Members of a vibrant intellectual scene in Enlightenment Scotland, Hume and Smith made many of the same friends (and enemies), joined the same clubs, and were interested in many of the same subjects well beyond philosophy and economics—from psychology and history to politics and Britain's conflict with the American colonies. The book reveals that Smith's private religious views were considerably closer to Hume's public ones than is usually believed. It also shows that Hume contributed more to economics—and Smith contributed more to philosophy—than is generally recognized.

Vividly written, The Infidel and the Professor is a compelling account of a great friendship that had great consequences for modern thought.

About Dennis C. Rasmussen

Dennis C. Rasmussen is professor of political science at Syracuse University's Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs. His books include The Infidel and the Professor: David Hume, Adam Smith, and the Friendship That Shaped Modern Thought and Fears of a Setting Sun. He lives in Cazenovia, New York.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Dan on August 06, 2018

This is a wonderful, engaging, erudite, and intellectually investigative work of biography of two figures deserving of such examination and their equally deserving friendship, that of David Hume and Adam Smith. While feuds and strife between great thinkers is usually philoprogenitive, friendships ar......more

Goodreads review by Otto on October 28, 2018

The friendship between Adam Smith and David Hume is one of the great Platonic love stories in the history of philosophy. The book unearths an intimate array of correspondences that offers a compelling narrative that works on two levels: 1) The human sympathy between two human beings who happened to......more

Goodreads review by Jana on July 22, 2019

A delightful biography of one of the most impactful friendships in the history of Western thought. I loved all the interjections of Hume's humor and wit, and of getting to know Smith as such an earnest, devoted friend and admirer. Both exhibited deep loyalty, affection, and enjoyment of their matche......more

Goodreads review by Dinah on April 09, 2023

I love that Hume decided that with his occupation as a writer, he just wouldn’t make much of an income. He was true to his self and wasn’t afraid to be different! Adams took a different route but the two still kept their friendship and enjoyed conservations of vast ideas and opinions.......more

Goodreads review by Josh on December 07, 2020

Basically a joint biography of Smith and Hume, who were close friends and influenced each other to some degree. "Conflict makes for high drama," Rasmussen notes in his introduction, "while camaraderie does not...there have been many books written on philosophical clashes, but far fewer on philosophi......more