Hume Inductive Reasoning

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Moreover, the problem that Hume seems to be hinting at is the problem of inductive reasoning. Inductive reasoning is defined in philosophical terms as the manner in which broad generalizations are made from specific events. Inductive arguments do not guarantee the truth if the conclusion, instead it makes likely the truth of the conclusion. Hume suggests that humans justify their beliefs about unobserved matter of facts by reason of induction which he rejects because there is a chance that the beliefs that they hold can turn out to be false. As a result, Hume questions the justification for why humans believe what they believe. According to Hume, the most logical attempt at describing a matter of fact is ineffective because he believes that it always involves a form of cause and effect. …show more content…
Hume is skeptical of this assertion because he believes that the only justification for a person to make such a claim stems from their experience of seeing the rock cause a splash on different occasions. Hume would hold that if a person had never thrown a rock into a river and never witnessed a splash, they would not conclude or ascertain the idea that the rock would cause a splash. The laws of gravity do not give rise to the conclusion that a rock being thrown into a river would cause a splash. Hume does not assert that the rock will not cause a splash but he holds that how humans arrive at such a conclusion is irrational especially since he poses that the actual cause that makes the splash in the water is unknowable by humans. Hume suggests that there is a secrete cause that connects the cause and effect that humans observe when witnessing a rock thrown into the water and a slash

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