David Hume, Dialogues Concerning Natural Religion (1779), part 10
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The whole earth, believe me ... is cursed and polluted. A perpetual war is kindled amongst all living creatures. Necessity, hunger, want, stimulate the strong and courageous: Fear, anxiety, terror, agitate the weak and infirm. The first entrance into life gives anguish to the new-born infant and to its wretched parent: Weakness, impotence, distress, attend each stage of that life: and it is at last finished in agony and horror.
— David Hume on Wild animal suffering
What It Means
This is a placeholder explanation generated by the low-overhead model. It interprets "The whole earth, believe me ... is cursed and polluted. A perpetual war is kindled amongst all living creatures. Necessity, hunger, want, stimulate the strong and courageous: Fear, anxiety, terror, agitate the weak and infirm. The first entrance into life gives anguish to the new-born infant and to its wretched parent: Weakness, impotence, distress, attend each stage of that life: and it is at last finished in agony and horror." in the context of "David Hume, Dialogues Concerning Natural Religion (1779), part 10" to mean that wisdom is timeless.
Source: Wikiquote: "Wild animal suffering" (H)
The 'What it means' explanation text was generated by Google Gemini Flash (accessed January 18, 2026). https://gemini.google.com/app
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About David Hume
David Hume (7 May 1711, N.S. April 26, O.S. – 25 August 1776) was a Scottish philosopher, historian, economist and essayist.
About David Hume
David Hume (7 May 1711, N.S. April 26, O.S. – 25 August 1776) was a Scottish philosopher, historian, economist and essayist.
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