The Nietzsche Podcast 135: Hume v/s Nietzsche - On Causality, Free Will & Habit
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Mar 10, 2026 A lively comparison of Hume and Nietzsche on causality, free will, and habit. They trace how belief in cause arises from habit, projection, or moral needs. The conversation contrasts Hume’s allegiance to common sense with Nietzsche’s genealogical critique of values. It highlights differing motives behind similar arguments and explores how morality shapes perception and the invention of responsibility.
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Nietzsche's Core Critique Of Hume On Causality
- Nietzsche agrees with Hume that reason cannot a priori justify necessary causal connections but criticizes Hume for effectively re-establishing that right through philosophical habit.
- Nietzsche accuses Hume of performing the very act he examines by justifying causality via habit and then presenting it as practically authoritative.
Common Sense Versus Philosophical Transvaluation
- Hume grounds causality in common-sense habit and places philosophy in service of everyday practice, while Nietzsche opposes common sense and aims beyond it.
- This divergence is not merely technical but stems from opposing philosophical impulses: conservatism versus transvaluation.
Nietzsche's Early Mechanistic Critique Of Free Will
- Early Nietzsche uses a mechanistic refutation: human action appears calculable like water movement, so free will is an illusion born of complexity.
- He likens the acting person's delusion to an omniscient calculator that could predict every action.