The Theory Of Moral Sentiments was a real scientific breakthrough. It shows that our moral ideas and actions are a product of our very nature as social creatures.
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If you are a seller for this product, would you like to suggest updates through seller support? Learn more about Amazon Prime. Today Adam Smith's reputation rests on his explanation of how rational self-interest in a free-market economy leads to economic well-being. It may surprise those who would discount Smith as an advocate of ruthless individualism that his first major work concentrates on ethics and charity. In fact, while chair at the University of Glasgow, Smith's lecture subjects, in order of preference, were natural theology, ethics, jurisprudence, and economics, according to John Millar, Smith's pupil at the time.
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There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later. If you want the entire text. This publication is misleading: If you want the entire text, don't buy this rip-off; go on line and print out the entire text content free. I thought a nice bound copy oif this out of print classic work would be nice. As so many people say "How can I give it zero stars? The Kessinger "book" is a bad reprint of a couple of chapters of Smith's entire "The Theory of Moral Sentiments" and runs less than their stated 60 pages. For half the price, you can get a brand new complete printed copy running several hundred pages or get the whole thing on Kindle for 99 cents.
Kessinger's description that talks about "our commitment for protecting, preserving, and promoting the world's literature in affordable, high quality, modern editions that are true to the original work" is laughable and insulting. Their market surely must be people who don't know any better. And surely the positive reviewers received a completely different edition from another publisher!
Please remove this edition from Amazon. Kindle Edition Verified Purchase. There are two aspects in this review. One is about the book and the other about Amazon's contribution to the Revolution in Reading. First of all the book. It will be interesting to compare those two in my system of no less than the Revolution in Learning.
As professor of economics I have also read Adam Smith's even more famous book The Wealth of Nations, even if half a century later than I should have. His easily recognizable very personal way of writing and suffocating the reader with, least to say, proliferous zunami of detailed text is at the same time entertaining and really suffocating. But also completely convincing.
They say about some political leaders that they have the Nile or an Amazon of thoughts. He would deserve of being a big political boss. As he in reality also is. Furthermore, The Theory of Moral Sentiments shows unequivocally that Smith's critics who focus solely on The Wealth of Nations and Smith's role as "the father of capitalism" to be missing a great deal of nuance in his viewpoints and arguments.
Most have not read The Wealth of Nations anyway, so their critiques are generally lacking. Perhaps more than any other observation made by Smith in his book I was most impressed by the following: As a proponent and believer in a universal truth I think it's possible to answer those questions, but others of a more relative bent may find it much more challenging or believe it impossible. So let the debate begin!
It is no accident that though The Theory of Moral Sentiments was published in it continues to be read and its influence has extended through many generations. A small but significant complaint against the book is its latter portion, which is Smith's response and critique of other philosophical perspectives.
It's tiresome, and I lacked the needed background to truly understand and appreciate the critique. In addition, the last 30 or so pages is Smith's treatise on language and its origins. Again, I lacked the necessary educational background to appreciate what I was reading. The Theory of Moral Sentiments is a brilliant and challenging book.
Smith's observations are captivating, provocative, and I think for the most part true. Smith is among some of the greatest thinkers and writers of all time; The Theory of Moral of Sentiments is the most compelling case for him to be so honored. A book on ethics, it explores Smith's theory of sympathy. Sympathy, or co-feeling, is the basis of all authors's further considerations.
Sympathy is the sharing of feelings, and Smith argues, is built into human beings: Inadequate sympathy is repulsive to us: We feel less sympathy for feelings that come from the body such as pain, or hunger and we admire people who can control them e. We feel more sympathy for the feelings that come from imagination but only if we ourselves can imagine having that feeling.
But we sympathize most for feelings that Smith calls social passions: Those passions cannot be repulsive even when taken to the extremes: The social passions are contrasted with unsocial ones such as anger, those passions make us usually more sympathetic to the victim of the feeling and not the feeler. A third category of passions - selfish passions such as grief and joy - are neither social nor unsocial. Smith understood that we feel more sympathy for our family members, neighbors and acquaintance than to people we do not know.
We feel more sympathy for the famous and the rich than to the poor - even as he explains that we shouldn't consider riches as a proxy for morality. Propriety of conduct depends on whether or not we can sympathize with the motives of person performing the deed. As the author puts it - as with vision sometimes to see clearly we need to consider something from a distance. Although self-love is a natural feeling, from the perspective of an impartial observer, we shouldn't sacrifice our neighbor for our gain because we are indistinguishable.
We judge ourselves as we judge others - by assuming the role of an impartial observer. Therefore, we are only really happy for the praise that is merited only the weak and vain people are satisfied by unearned praise. As humans we don't strive for praise but praiseworthiness, to embody some virtue even if it doesn't benefit us directly.
A soldier tries to embody sacrifice or bravery when he dies valiantly in battle. People deduce rules of conduct by analyzing the cases which were agreeable or which were not. Smith believes we were given those mechanisms sympathy, the feeling of justice and other feelings to be able to live in society, but whether or not the causality is reversed isn't central to his argument.
Reading philosophy is always a chore for me, but The Theory of Moral sentiments wasn't half bad. Despite the dated language Smith writes cleanly and presents his arguments well. My only complaint is that different parts of the books aren't cohesive and there' no natural flow to the reading. All in all, I'm happy for the experience, it tickled my brain and it's always fun to reconsider and rethink things taken for granted. Say approbation one more time Machiavelli for the people of 'commercial societies' without the irony , or a sentimental education for empire builders [Through my ratings, reviews and edits I'm providing intellectual property and labor to Amazon.
Intellectual property and labor require compensation. Dangerous, scary book, artificially and deliberately modelling ethics, i. Smith puts on a classical, serene tone of voice to sound like a modern Seneca, dismisses the deity by referring to god as the 'Author of Nature' who allegedely and blasphemously appointed human beings to be their own judges, and then states that virtue consists in pleasing the 'impartial spectator' we all host in our divine breasts. Beware of the 'casuists', i. Feel free to kill softly, if your impartial spectator approves.
In crystal clear English, Smith lays down the foundations for a sentimental education that perfectly fits the need for order and calmness of 'commercial countries', whereby mass starvations in the colonies can be frowned upon by the casuists but certainly not by the enlightened citizens who never lose sight of their impartial spectator.
Never get worked up: Smith was already socially 'darwinian' one hundred years before the Beagle, which is admirable. Smith's sentimental education, largely rejected by Victorian piety, will find a safe haven in political economy, later in neoclassical economics, and finally in Hayek's neoliberalism, where the 'market' will replace the impartial spectator, and any reference to absolute principles of justice will be dismissed as 'irrational'. Please see quotes below. It sooths and composes the breast, seems to favour the vital motions, and to promote the healthful state of the human constitution; and it is rendered still more delightful by the consciousness of the gratitude and satisfaction which it must excite in him who is the object of it".
The mind, therefore, is rarely so disturbed, but that the company of a friend will restore it to some degree of tranquility and sedateness. The breast is, in some measure, calmed and composed the moment we come into his presence. We are immediately put in mind of the light in which he will view our situation, and we begin to view it ourselves in the same light; for the effect of sympathy is instantaneous.
The Theory of Moral Sentiments - Wikipedia
The Theory of Moral Sentiments is not what Smith is known for, but it should be. In it, he a The mind, therefore, is rarely so disturbed, but that the company of a friend will restore it to some degree of tranquility and sedateness. In it, he argues comprehensively that to the extent that we sympathize with the passions of another person, we find their passions proper. Specifically, we "approve of another man's judgment, not as something useful, but as right, as accurate, as agreeable to truth and reality: When we impartially imagine our own conduct or character as praiseworthy, and it is subsequently praised by others, we feel confirmed and reassured; however, we feel our blameworthy actions no more praiseworthy simply because they were improperly praised by others.
As other reviewers have noted, the prose is certainly 18th century, but articulate and clear nonetheless. Smith covers sympathy's role in determining propriety, merit, duty, justice, and utility. He is commonly understood as utilitarian of sorts, but this is not truly accurate. His version of moral sentimentalism is something more akin to a hybrid of virtue ethics and utilitarianism—almost a precursor to modern day social intuitionism. I definitely recommend TMS for anyone who is interested in less rigid moral systems that reflect the indeterminate and vague nature of human morality.
It is very difficult, if not impossible, consistently with the brevity of our design, to give the reader a proper idea of this excellent work. A dry abstract of the system would convey no juster idea of it, than the skeleton of a departed beauty would of her form when she was alive; at the same time the work is so well methodified, the parts grow so naturally and gracefully out of reach other that it would be doing it equal injustice to shew it by broken and detached pieces. There will, in a work It is very difficult, if not impossible, consistently with the brevity of our design, to give the reader a proper idea of this excellent work.
There will, in a work of this kind, always be great deficiencies; but we are far from professing to make our accounts stand to the reader in the place of the books on which we remark. We mean to raise, not to satisfy curiosity. There have been of late many books written on our moral duties, and our moral sensations.
One would have thought the matter had been exhausted. But this author has struck out a new, and at the same time a perfectly natural road of speculation on this subject. Had it been only an ingenious novelety on any other subject, it might have been praised; but with regard to morals, nothing could be more dangerous. We conceive, that here the theory is in all its essential parts just, and founded on truth and nature. The author seeks for the foundation of the just, the fit, the proper, the decent, in our most common and most allowed passions; and making approbation and disapprobation the tests of virtue and vice, and shewing that those are founded on sympathy, he raises from this simple truth, one of the most beautiful fabrics of moral theory, that has perhaps ever appeared.
The illustrations are numerous and happy, and shew the author to be a man of uncommon observation. His language is easy and spirited, and puts things before you in the fullest light; it is rather painting than writing. Source of Edmund Burke's review: This book, and the review of Burke, kind of threw me in an awkward position. On the one hand I still revere and admire Burke and see him as one of the most underrated political philosophers of our time.
On the other hand, I can't agree with him on this, especially since I have read some psychoanalysis, Hume and Nietzsche. One could observe many similarities between Hume and Smith, given the fact that they are close friends and Smith once entrusted his drafts to Hume. Both men sought to undo the monopoly of the Church when it comes to moral theory. Both men spoke against the waning moeur of aristocracy, the whole package of disposing one's passions Norbert Elias is a damn good reader!
But when it comes to the origin of morality, Hume is that "nothing could be more dangerous" person. He made a God the origin of all moral feelings. Smith made the two "natural" tendencies, self-love and compassion, the basis of his theory. Being a man of pre-French Revolution, his theory of self-love is inevitably too "cleansed", in the sense that the ambivalence of self-love is absent. Self-love, and the love for the people that are close to us, is always presented in a pure and positive way.
Eros is completely detached from Thanatos. It would be after French Revolution, Nietzsche, psychoanalysis that people would have a chance to understand this quote: So it's kind of a torture for me, a very ambivalent person, to read his logic. The one thing that made up this frustration is Smith's testimony on the shift of psychological structure. I have heard about people's arguments on the role of gods in Homer's works. One of them is that the experience of gods e. When a psyche develops, it would experience its development as something external and divine. When Smith ceaselessly wrote about the impartial third-party observer that "the Creator" planted into us, he is talking about none other than the bud of superego -- and behold, it's really experienced as something divine.
But this impartial observer is more than a token. It also colored Smith's theory with Egalitarianism. To behave according to the judgment of this observer necessarily means that one has the capacity to judge every other person, with the underlying premise that every person is equal and essentially "the same". And by assuming this, Smith denied the possibility of transforming the self, whether he liked it or not.
Once again, it's natural for Smith, a person of 18th century, to think like that. The refutation of this belief would not come until 19th century. So much for Smith's moral theory. Let's see what will happen in Wealth of Nations. Aug 01, CadBot rated it it was amazing.
This is the best book I have ever read. I have read this book two times in a row back to back. I keep going back to to this book as a reference for a lot of aspects of my life. I am an engineer, but the info in this book was more helpful to me then most people. I say that because a lot my skills required a lot of anti-social practice. I am not a big reader and my v This is the best book I have ever read. I am not a big reader and my vocabulary is questionable at best, but that's what online dictionary's are for!
I had to search s of words probably, but once I understood their meaning, the info in this book was invaluable. May 31, Noviny rated it really liked it. The Theory of Moral Sentiments is one of two major works that Adam Smith wrote, and to try and understand the man who wrote down and formalised many of the key concepts of a capitalist society, and anyone wanting to understand his more famous book, The Wealth of Nations , should really delve in to this book.
For those more interested in a different take on moral philosophy, this book is one of the best books you can read for defining, outlining and arguing for ethics as our sympathy for other peop The Theory of Moral Sentiments is one of two major works that Adam Smith wrote, and to try and understand the man who wrote down and formalised many of the key concepts of a capitalist society, and anyone wanting to understand his more famous book, The Wealth of Nations , should really delve in to this book.
For those more interested in a different take on moral philosophy, this book is one of the best books you can read for defining, outlining and arguing for ethics as our sympathy for other people, going in to both how such sympathetic ethics would work as well as addressing some of the major concerns. Nov 24, Alessandra rated it it was amazing Shelves: Must read book to anyone interested in Economics or Sociology.
Smith's observations on human relations and sentiments seem to me very precise. It was written in , but it explains contemporary society so well it could have been written yesterday. Why are we moral? Why are some people admired? Our undeniable need of acceptance by society. El librito es muy bello, simple y elegante, finamente razonado y rebosante de humildad intelectual. This book isn't terribly informative as a work on philosophy and psychology in general, but it is a somewhat fascinating look into the mind of Adam Smith himself.
Dec 02, Zachary Slayback rated it it was amazing. Chapter 2 - Of the pleasure of mutual sympathy Als anderen op eenzelfde manier meeleven als wijzelf geeft dat een intens gevoel van verbondenheid. Dat anderen meeleven met onze boosheid is belangrijker voor ons dan dat ze meeleven met onze vreugde. De gevoelens kunnen gaan over iets dan buiten ons beiden ligt. Als iemands oordelen over triviale zaken iedereen vindt de ondergaande zon mooi dezelfde zijn als de onze, dan is dat OK maar niet bijzonder. Als echter iemand juiste oordelen heeft over iets bijzonders, of verbanden legt die wij niet legden, dan is dat basis voor bewondering.
De gevoelens kunnen ook gaan over iets dan een van ons beiden aangaat. Als mij iets ergs overkomt en een ander leeft niet mee, dat ben ik daar erg teleurgesteld over. In het geval van 2 is er altijd wel een verschil in meeleven. Een ander voelt nooit mijn ongeluk in dezelfde mate als waarin ik het voel. De mate van meeleven is in verhouding met de mate van vriendschap. Een goede vriend leeft sterk mee, een vage bekende veel minder, een onbekende helemaal niet.
De beminnelijke deugden, samengevat in het grote gebod je naaste als jezelf, God boven alles , is de basis voor harmonieus samenleven. Fatsoen is duidelijk minder dan deugd. Perfect fatsoenlijk leven is niet altijd bereikbaar. Mensen hanteren daar 2 standaards: Alles wat iemand meer bereikt dan 2 is het loven waard, zelfs als dat ver bij 1 vandaan blijft. Zo kunnen we bijvoorbeeld ook kunst beoordelen. Zelfs op de allermooiste kunst die we kennen ver boven niveau 2 is altijd nog wel kritiek mogelijk het haalt 1 nooit.
Section 2 - Of the degrees of the different passions which are consistent with propriety Chapter 1 - Of the passions which take their origin from the body Overgeslagen Chapter 2 - Of those passions which take their origin from a particular turn or habit of the Imagination Overgeslagen Chapter 3 - Of the unsocial passions Overgeslagen Chapter 4 - Of the social passions Overgeslagen Chapter 5 - Of the selfish passions Als iemand een enorm fortuin toevalt, is het voor anderen moeilijk eerlijk met blij met hem te zijn.
Een zekere mate van afgunst is er altijd bij. Dit is een beetje te modereren door bescheiden te blijven, maar vaak verliest man hierdoor toch zijn oude vrienden. En het is moeilijk in de nieuwe stand nieuwe vrienden te maken. Kleine voordelen echter, zijn gemakkelijk voor anderen om in mee te leven. Maar meeleven met groot verdriet is wel sterk en gemeend. Section 3 - Of the effects of prosperity and adversity upon the judgement of mankind with regard to the propriety of action; and why it is more easy to obtain their approbation in the one state than in the other Chapter 1 - That though our sympathy with Sorrow is generally a more lively sensation than our sympathy with Joy, it commonly falls much more short of the violence of what is naturally felt by the person principally concerned.
Als we meeleven met verdriet verbergen we wel vaak onze tranen. Als we meeleven met vreugde dan lachen we openlijk. Chapter 2 - Of the origin of Ambition, and of the distinction of Ranks Omdat de mens meer geneigd is tot meeleven met vreugde dan met verdriet, hebben we de neiging te koop te lopen met ons bezit, en onze armoede te verbergen. Het loon van een arbeider is genoeg om een mens te voeden, te kleden, hem een dak boven het hoofd te geven en hem de vreugde van een gezin te geven. Alleen maar, omdat we meeleven willen hebben op ons geluk en aanzien te krijgen.
De deugd is superieur aan pijn, armoede, gevaar en dood. Maar, je misere blootleggen voor anderen en geminacht worden, is het ergste van alles. Chapter 3 - Of the corruption of our Moral Sentiments, which is occasioned by this disposition to admire the rich and the great, and to despise or neglect persons of poor and mean condition De neiging de rijken te bewonderen en armen te minachten, hoewel noodzakelijk om de orde in de samenleven hand te haven, is de universele grond voor het corrumperen van onze morele maatstaven.
Part 2 - Of Merit and Demerit, or, of the objects of reward and punishment Grotendeels overgeslagen. Alleen section 3 introduction en chapter 3 gelezen. Section 3 - Of the influence of fortune upon the sentiments of mankind, with regard to the merit or demerit of actions Introduction Lof of blaam, beloning of straf horen bij 3 elementen van een actie: Maar, hoewel dit in abstracto helemaal waar is en iedereen het hiermee eens is, wordt het lastig om dit in de praktijk te brengen. Want elke praktijksituatie leidt mensen tot andere oordelen dan dit principe.
Chapter 1 - Of the causes of this Influence of Fortune Overgeslagen Chapter 2 - Of the extent of this Influence of Fortune Overgeslagen Chapter 3 - Of the final cause of this Irregularity of Sentiments Maar, stel je voor dat we echt gingen beoordelen op intenties. Zodra we het vermoeden hebben van iemands goede of slechte bedoelingen zou er al sprake moeten zijn van straf of beloning.
Het lastige is juist dat we die intenties niet kennen.
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Maar om mensen te motiveren moet je vermoedelijk wel hun intenties aanspreken, en het verlangen wekken naar de consequenties van de actie. In principe mag hier natuurlijk geen verschil in zitten. We hebben anderen nodig om ons mores bij te brengen. Chapter 2 - Of the love of Praise, and of that of Praise-worthiness; and of the dread of Blame, and of that of Blame-worthiness Er is een verschil tussen het verlangen naar lof en het verlangen naar lofwaardigheid.
Wat dichtbij ligt vinden we erg belangrijk, wat ver weg is minder. Chapter 4 - Of the Nature of Self-deceit, and of the Origin and Use of general Rules Als we onszelf moeten beoordelen kan dat bij de intentie om wat te gaan doen, of bij het doen zelf. Bij de intentie zijn we vaak het minst objectief, we zijn te vol van de plannen zelf. Gelukkig zijn we wel gevoelig voor de oordelen van anderen, en die leiden tot het ontstaan van algemene regels waar we ons aan houden.
Chapter 5 - Of the influence and authority of the general Rules of Morality, and that they are justly regarded as the Laws of the Deity Deugdzaam leven wordt dus ondersteund door algemene morele regels. Wel veel waarden, waaruit regels af te leiden zijn in specifieke situaties]. De mens kan meewerken met God the Deity , zover als hem wordt toegelaten binnen de grenzen van de voorzienigheid Providence. Chapter 6 - In what cases the Sense of Duty ought to be the sole principle of our conduct; and in what cases it ought to concur with other motives Religie geeft zoveel motieven die deugdzaam gedrag ondersteunen dat velen denken dat religie de enige bron is van deugdzaam gedrag.
Elk gedrag zou dan moeten gebeuren uit liefde tot God. Er zijn echter ook situaties waar deugdzaam gedrag gewoon voortkomt uit plichtsbesef. Er zijn 2 situaties die dit helpen beantwoorden: Als iemand mij heeft geholpen vereffen ik dat zo snel mogelijk weer. Vriendschap is nog veel lastiger. Gerechtigheid is juist eenvoudiger, want daar gaat het om vastgelegde wetten. Part 4 - Of the effect of utility upon the sentiment of approbation Chapter 1 - Of the beauty which the appearance of Utility bestows upon all the productions of art, and of the extensive influence of this species of Beauty Nut utility is een belangrijke component van schoonheid.
Wat nuttig is vinden we mooi en goed, en v. Rijken consumeren meer, maar verdelen daarmee hun rijkdom over de armen. Als het mooi weer is gaat alles prima, maar in regen en vorst heeft de bedelaar toch echt een probleem. Maar zodra we proberen dit te abstraheren lukt het nauwelijks meer om oordelen te vormen. Zijn er niet meer dimensies? In ieder geval de verticale dimensie voor de christen. Het is duidelijk dat iedereen het beste voor zichzelf kan zorgen. Iedereen weet van zichzelf het beste waar hij plezier aan heeft en welke pijn hij wil vermijden.
Daarna komt de familie. Familie lijkt beperkt te zijn tot de bloedband. Section 3 - Of self-command Je kan alles weten van moraal, maar je hebt zelf-beheersing nodig om je verstandig te gedragen. Onze passies zitten ons vaak in de weg. Er zijn 2 soorten passies: Beheersing hiertegen wordt wel kracht, mannelijkheid genoemd.
Beheersing hiertegen wordt wel gematigdheid, beschaving genoemd. Oorlog is de school waar we zelf-beheersing leren. Part 7 - Of systems of moral philosophy Overgeslagen Considerations concerning the first formation of language Overgeslagen Mar 19, Arjun rated it it was amazing Shelves: Probably what the economists should have read before reading the "Wealth of Nations.
I had seen this book referenced many times in other books, and since I had read "The Wealth of Nations" I was curious about what Adam Smith had to say about morals and ethics. It may have been a premature endeavor on my part because my main focus in reading and my main interest lies not in this field of study.
Or rather, something does but something do not, so was it with this book - something was very interesting but other things were quite boring and I found my mind traveling other places whil I had seen this book referenced many times in other books, and since I had read "The Wealth of Nations" I was curious about what Adam Smith had to say about morals and ethics. Or rather, something does but something do not, so was it with this book - something was very interesting but other things were quite boring and I found my mind traveling other places while reading.
Smith writes in a very objective and informative manner out of both expertise, experience and sometimes just common sense so that his own opinions are kind of drowning. He also has a tendency to section the work in somewhat strange ways that are not always too obvious, in a language that is somewhat complicated. When I got the gist of one section, I found it often very well formulated and the content very good, but then the next section could go above my head when he goes into more detail on not so fundamental issues affecting the main thread. It's a book well read with a marker that one uses diligently so that one is able to find back to the issues that stoke a chord.
So, after finishing the book, it seems that there are many parts I have to go back and read because of the exquisite content and other parts that I have to go back and read when I encounter a situation where I need to refresh my mind on something where Smith wrote something relevant.
In this way, the book may function as a reference work of sorts. This review is not so much on the content of the book, I feel I am not the man to reiterate the views proposed or the quality of Smith's philosophical thinking, although it seems to me orderly and for that time both accurate and comprehensive. My version of the book was a bit tedious and neither annotated nor had any kind of introduction or forward, something that would have helped a first-time reader of the work.
Not a great collection of recordings, only one or two unlistenable, but few stand out tracks. Audio quality pretty poor throughout, unfortunately there isn't anywhere else to find audio of this lesser known work. Adam Smith's other masterpiece, The Theory of Moral Sentiments is equal parts descriptive psychology and an innovative approach to how the individuals relationship with others shapes morality.
The work begins with an in depth description of the faculty of symp Listened through Librevox. The work begins with an in depth description of the faculty of sympathy.
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Sympathy, unlike Hume's Moral organ, grounds this work and it's a convincing and non-reductive place to start a work on morality. Adam smith believes our imagination of what others feel sympathy informs our moral feelings and that they are largely geared towards gaining the approbation of our peers. Interestingly this implicates both action and reaction in virtue and morality. All of this leads to the development of that little "demi-god in our breast" the impartial spectator.
The impartial spectator is a very early superego like structure and I would do an injustice to try to sum it all up here. Smith's refusal of reduction and systemization is frustrating and made the work feel both repetitive and sprawling a times.
The Theory of Moral Sentiments
Smith depends a lot on what he sees to be common sense, and if you disagree that this is common sense many of his premises will fail for you. He cites liberally from history and fiction, which in some cases is just wrong due to the biases and errors of the time. Smith's work is in some ways a phenomenology of public morality, studied from within in a method that almost seems hermeneutical.
In this way Smith feels strangely out of time, out of date, and timeless. It's a powerful work that I nevertheless found kind of boring. Expect lots of description of how people would react in certain situations and what certain virtues are. Although the exact date of Smith's birth is unknown, his baptism was recorded on 16 June at Kirkcaldy. A Scottish moral philosopher and a pioneer of political economy. The latter, usually abbreviated as The Wealth of Nat Although the exact date of Smith's birth is unknown, his baptism was recorded on 16 June at Kirkcaldy.
The latter, usually abbreviated as The Wealth of Nations, is considered his magnum opus and the first modern work of economics. Adam Smith is widely cited as the father of modern economics. For other authors of this name, see Adam Smith Books by Adam Smith. See All Goodreads Deals…. Trivia About The Theory of Mor No trivia or quizzes yet. Quotes from The Theory of Mor