Art may make a suit of clothes; but nature must produce a man.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- Hume claims art can craft clothes but nature must create the human being.
- In plain terms
- Art makes clothes, but only nature can make a person.
- What can you take from it?
- Nature creates people; art only creates objects.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- What makes a person?
- Can art make life?
Another view
It ignores the human capacity for art and creativity.
More from David Hume
It is a great mortification to the vanity of man, that his utmost art and industry can never equal the meanest of nature's productions, either for beauty or va…
Permalink to quote #51 If nature has been frugal in her gifts and endowments, there is the more need of art to supply her defects. If she has been generous and liberal, know that she…
Permalink to quote #53 Avarice, the spur of industry, is so obstinate a passion, and works its way through so many real dangers and difficulties, that it is not likely to be scared b…
Permalink to quote #50
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