A System of Moral Philosophy, in Three Books
_title_page.png) Title page of Volume 1 of the first edition (1755) | |
| Author | Francis Hutcheson |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Subject | Moral philosophy |
| Genre | Treatise |
| Published | 1755 |
| Publisher | R. and A. Foulis |
| Publication place | Kingdom of Great Britain |
| Media type | |
| Pages | 358 (volume 1); 380 (volume 2) |
| OCLC | 8647481 |
A System of Moral Philosophy, in Three Books is a 1755 philosophical treatise by the Scottish Enlightenment philosopher Francis Hutcheson. Completed shortly before his death and published posthumously by his son, Francis Hutcheson the younger, the work includes a prefatory biographical account by William Leechman, then Professor of Divinity at the University of Glasgow.
The two-volume work presents Hutcheson's most comprehensive and systematic account of moral philosophy, encompassing ethics, natural law, and political theory. It defends Hutcheson's theory of a moral sense as the basis of virtue, examines the nature of justice, rights, and obligations, and outlines principles of civil government grounded in human sociability and consent. The treatise synthesises and expands upon themes from Hutcheson's earlier writings.
Modern scholars have drawn attention to the book's early articulation of moral concern for nonhuman animals. Interpreters such as Aaron Garrett and Michael Bradie highlight Hutcheson's claim that animals possess a right not to suffer needlessly, situating the work as an early contribution to the development of animal ethics and animal rights discourse.
Background
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Francis Hutcheson (1694–1746) was a central figure of the Scottish Enlightenment and one of the most influential moral philosophers of the eighteenth century. As the teacher of Adam Smith and a major influence on David Hume and Jeremy Bentham, Hutcheson helped lay the groundwork for later utilitarian thought with his principle that morally right actions are those that tend to promote the general good. He was the foremost advocate of the moral sense theory, which, following Shaftesbury, held that moral judgments arise primarily from feeling rather than reason. His ideas were widely discussed in Britain and the American colonies, where his political philosophy influenced revolutionary thinkers. Hutcheson began work on A System of Moral Philosophy in 1738 and continued to revise it until his death.[1]
Summary
[edit]In A System of Moral Philosophy, Hutcheson develops a comprehensive ethical theory based on the internal constitution of human nature, the concept of natural rights, and the structure of civil society.
Book I: Human nature and the supreme good
[edit]In the first book, Hutcheson examines the faculties of the human mind, distinguishing between understanding, will, and the affections. He introduces his moral sense theory, asserting that humans have an innate capacity to perceive moral beauty and deformity. This "moral sense" is distinct from self-love and enables moral judgments. He defends the existence of disinterested benevolence and argues that the supreme happiness of humanity consists in the exercise of virtue—understood as benevolence guided by reason. The book also explores the relation of virtue to divine providence and natural religion.
Book II: Natural laws and private rights
[edit]The second book sets out the foundations of natural law. Hutcheson outlines the principles of obligation, focusing on contracts, property rights, and duties between individuals. He distinguishes between perfect and imperfect rights, emphasising that justice involves a respect for the rights of others, while benevolence encompasses duties that cannot be legally enforced. The book addresses topics such as oaths and promises, the value of goods, economic justice, and the basis of legal obligation. He insists that all laws must be evaluated by their conformity to reason, public good, and natural equity.
Book III: Civil society and political institutions
[edit]In the third book, Hutcheson turns to political theory. He analyses the origins of civil government, arguing that it arises naturally from human sociability and the necessity of securing rights and order. He describes various forms of polity—monarchy, aristocracy, democracy—and discusses their respective advantages and drawbacks. Topics include marriage and family, parental authority, slavery, magistracy, taxation, civil laws, and the justice of war. Hutcheson maintains that the legitimacy of government rests on the consent of the governed and the promotion of the common good, and he articulates a theory of limited, accountable political power grounded in natural rights.
Interpretations of Hutcheson on animals
[edit]'Tis true these creatures are capable of some happiness and misery; their sufferings naturally move our compassion. We approve relieving them in many cases, and must condemn all unnecessary cruelty toward them as showing an inhuman temper.
Scholars such as Aaron Garrett have interpreted A System of Moral Philosophy as articulating one of the earliest Anglophone arguments for animal rights. In a 2007 article in the Journal of the History of Philosophy, he argues that Hutcheson departed from earlier natural law theorists by grounding rights not in rational agency but in sentience and the capacity for suffering. Hutcheson contends that animals have a right not to be subjected to unnecessary suffering, drawing parallels with the moral regard owed to infants. Garrett places Hutcheson within an alternative tradition of rights theory, distinct from the Lockean model, that would later influence figures such as Humphrey Primatt and Jeremy Bentham.[3]
Michael Bradie observes that Hutcheson provides a theistic justification for human dominion over animals based on the superior rational capacities of human beings. At the same time, Hutcheson acknowledges that animals are capable of suffering and insists that unnecessary cruelty is morally wrong. While he denies that animals possess rights which override human needs, he argues that they have a right not to suffer needlessly, drawing an analogy to the moral consideration owed to infants. Bradie characterises this position as a proto-utilitarian attempt to balance human interests with animal welfare, while maintaining a hierarchical view of moral standing grounded in cognitive capacity.[4]
Legacy
[edit]The Eighteenth-Century Scottish Studies Society has described the work as a major contribution to the study of the Scottish Enlightenment, describing the "System" as Hutcheson's final and most comprehensive statement on moral philosophy and a landmark in the intellectual history of the period.[1]
Publication history
[edit]The book was printed and sold by R. and A. Foulis, printers to the University of Glasgow, and distributed in London by A. Millar and T. Longman. It was released in two volumes in 1755, five years after Hutcheson's death, and published posthumously by his son, Francis Hutcheson the younger.[5]
A new edition was published in 2000 by Thoemmes, with an introduction by Daniel Carey, and later republished by A & C Black in 2006.[1][6] This was followed by a 2015 edition by Cambridge University Press.[7]
References
[edit]- ^ a b c "A System of Moral Philosophy (Continuum Classic Texts Series) - Hutcheson, Francis: 9780826488152". AbeBooks. Retrieved 28 June 2025.
- ^ Hutcheson, Francis (1755). A System of Moral Philosophy, in Three Books. Prefatory biographical account by William Leechman. Glasgow; London: R. and A. Foulis; A. Millar and T. Longman. p. 11.
- ^ Garrett, Aaron (2007). "Francis Hutcheson and the Origin of Animal Rights". Journal of the History of Philosophy. 45 (2): 243–265. doi:10.1353/hph.2007.0032.
- ^ Bradie, Michael (1999), Maienschein, Jane; Ruse, Michael (eds.), "The Moral Status of Animals in Eighteenth-Century British Philosophy", Biology and the Foundation of Ethics, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, pp. 32–51, doi:10.1017/cbo9780511609077.003, ISBN 978-0-511-60907-7, retrieved 28 June 2025
- ^ Hutcheson, Francis (1755). "Title page". A System of Moral Philosophy, in Three Books. Prefatory biographical account by William Leechman. Glasgow; London: R. and A. Foulis; A. Millar and T. Longman.
- ^ Hutcheson, Francis (2000). A System of Moral Philosophy. Introduction by Daniel Carey. Bristol: Thoemmes. ISBN 978-1-85506-851-3.
- ^ Hutcheson, Francis (2015). A System of Moral Philosophy: In Three Books. Cambridge Library Collection - Philosophy. Vol. 1. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-1-108-06028-8.
External links
[edit]
- A System of Moral Philosophy – Volume 1 and Volume 2 at the Internet Archive
- A System of Moral Philosophy – Volume 1 and Volume 2 at Google Books
