Author name not noted above: David Hume. Originally published between 1909 and 1917 under the name "Harvard Classics," this stupendous 51-volume set-a collection of the greatest writings from literature, philosophy, history, and mythology-was assembled by American academic CHARLES WILLIAM ELIOT (1834-1926), Harvard University's longest-serving president. Also known as "Dr. Eliot's Five Foot Shelf," it represented Eliot's belief that a basic liberal education could be gleaned by reading from an anthology of works that could fit on five feet of bookshelf. Volume XXXVII features significant works by three of the most essential thinkers writing in the English language: • "Some Thoughts Concerning Education," by English philosopher JOHN LOCKE (1632-1704), the 1693 essay that has profoundly influenced Western ideas about education • Three Dialogues Between Hylas and Philonous in Opposition to Sceptics and Atheists, by Irish philosopher GEORGE BERKELEY (1685-1753), published in 1713 and fancifully pitting the author against Locke, his adversary in British empiricism, on matters of skepticism, perception, and materialism • An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding, by Scottish philosopher DAVID HUME (1711-1776), the 1748 treatise that continues to be reflected in everything from modern psychology to modern science fiction.
