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David Hume
David Hume (1711-1776) was a Scottish philosopher, writer, historian, and important figure in the Enlightenment. Hume presented a positive view of human nature but a sceptical view of religion's usefulness. His Treatise of Human Nature was...
Definition
King David
According to biblical tradition (and some say myth), David (c. 1035-970 BCE) was the second king in the ancient United Kingdom of Israel who helped establish the eternal throne of God. A former shepherd, David was renowned for his passion...
Definition
Social Contract
The social contract is an idea in philosophy that at some real or hypothetical point in the past, humans left the state of nature to join together and form societies by mutually agreeing which rights they would enjoy and how they would be...
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David IV the Builder
David IV the Builder or the Restorer (also known as Davit IV Aghmashenebeli) was the king of Georgia from 1089 to 1125 CE. His long reign was marked by a substantial revival of medieval Georgia, he regained much of Georgia's lost territory...
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Alexandra David-Néel
Alexandra David-Néel (l. 1868-1969) was a world traveler, writer, and Buddhist spiritualist who wrote over 30 books on her journeys which took her 18,641.136 miles (30,000 km) around the world on foot or by various conveyances. Her works...
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David II of Scotland
David II of Scotland ruled as king from 1329 to 1371 CE. Succeeding his father Robert the Bruce (r. 1306-1329 CE) when still a child, his early reign was threatened by the pretender Edward Balliol (c. 1283-1364 CE), son of King John Balliol...
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David I of Scotland
David I of Scotland reigned from 1124 to 1153 CE. Taking over from his elder brother Alexander I of Scotland (r. 1107-1124 CE), David continued to consolidate the kingdom of Scotland as a single nation, built castles and monasteries, and...
Definition
Adam Smith
Adam Smith (1723-1790) was a Scottish philosopher, economist, and leading Enlightenment figure. In The Wealth of Nations, he advocates free trade and limited interference in markets by governments, for which he is seen as the founder of liberal...
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Immanuel Kant
Immanuel Kant (1724-1804) was a German Enlightenment thinker who is widely regarded as one of the most important philosophers of any period. His most famous works of critical philosophy include The Critique of Pure Reason, which challenged...
Definition
Jeremy Bentham
Jeremy Bentham (1748-1832) was an English philosopher and liberal social reformer best known as the founder of utilitarianism based on the greatest happiness principle, that is, rationally judging the success of a law by considering how many...