Hutcheson, Francis

AbstractFrancis Hutcheson (1694–1746) was an important sentimentalist moral philosopher and a central figure in the Scottish Enlightenment. That he was such a major figure is due mostly to his influence on other notable Scottish thinkers of the time: David Hume (with whom he corresponded;seeHume, David), Adam Smith (for whom he served as teacher;seeSmith, Adam), and Thomas Reid (for whom Hutcheson's writings were a central inspiration;seeReid, Thomas). Though his family was Scottish, Hutcheson was Nortzhern Irish by birth, and did not take up a position in Scotland (at the University of Glasgow) until 1730, only after his most important works,Inquiry into the Original of our Ideas of Beauty and Virtue(1725) and hisEssay on the Nature and Conduct of the Passions and Affections, with Illustrations on the Moral Sense(1728), had seen the light of day. A third major work,A System of Moral Philosophy, was never completed during Hutcheson's lifetime, and was published posthumously in 1755.