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David Hume was born on the 7th of may in the year 1711 in Scotland. He was a philosopher and a strong proponent of empiricism which is a theory of knowledge which advocates is origin in the senses. He believed, in a way that was stronger than anyone who came before him, that if something could not be perceived, it could not be known. Though he was better understood as a historian during his lifetime, he remained the prevailing voice for this view until his death.

Hume was the first philosopher to explicitly deny the immortality of the soul. He had a reputation for being a skeptic and an atheist. As a result, philosophers and theologians who subscribed to the immortality of the soul often engaged with Hume throughout his life in an attempt to get him to concede his denial of their beliefs. I can understand why such an event might be appealing. To argue the strongest empiricist in the land into a theoretical submission would be the equivalent of philosophical regicide.

In the year 1776, Hume was approaching his demise as a result of some form of cancer. A philosopher and lawyer by the name of James Boswell visited Hume twice at his death bed in the weeks before his the day of his death. During these visits, the two intellectuals discussed the immortality of the soul. Boswell couldn't believe that an atheist could go to his death with contemptment. Boswell was attempting to draw a concession from him concerning his denial of the immortal soul. Hume graciously granted Boswell admittance to his bedroom at this most personal time of his life.

Finally, in frustration, Boswell asks if Hume can at least conceive of the possibility that the soul is immortal. Hume's final words were as follows: