Francis Hutcheson (philosopher)

Francis Hutcheson (/ˈhʌtʃɪsən/; 8 August 1694 – 8 August 1746) was an Irish philosopher of Scottish descent, widely regarded as one of the key figures of the early Scottish Enlightenment. He served as Professor of Moral Philosophy at the University of Glasgow and was a major advocate of moral sense theory, which holds that humans possess an innate sense that guides moral judgments. Hutcheson is best known for his ethical writings, in which he defends benevolence as the primary source of moral virtue and anticipates later utilitarian theories with his formulation of "the greatest happiness for the greatest number".

Beyond ethics, Hutcheson made significant contributions to aesthetics, epistemology, logic, and metaphysics. He was among the first modern thinkers to explore beauty as a product of an internal sense, helping to establish aesthetics as a distinct branch of philosophy. In epistemology, he engaged critically with John Locke's empiricism while defending the role of innate dispositions. In logic and metaphysics, he proposed early versions of common-sense realism and contributed to the development of the Scottish school of common sense.

Hutcheson also developed an early argument for animal rights, contending that sentient creatures deserve moral consideration based on their capacity to experience pleasure and pain. His influence extended to later Enlightenment thinkers such as David Hume, Adam Smith, Jeremy Bentham, and Thomas Reid, and his writings were widely read in both Britain and colonial America.