The Theory of Moral Sentiments, Or, an Essay Towards an Analysis of the Principles by Which Men Naturally Judge Concerning the Conduct and Character, ... Which Is Added, a Dissertation On the Origin

by Adam Smith

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Genres: Philosophy

404 pages, Hardcover

Published October 11, 2018

About the author

For other authors of this name, see Adam Smith.

Adam Smith FRSA FRS FRSE was a Scottish philosopher and economist who was a pioneer in thinking on political economy and a key figure during the Scottish Enlightenment. He wrote two classic works, The Theory of Moral Sentiments (1759) and An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations (1776). The latter, often abbreviated as The Wealth of Nations , is considered his magnum opus and the first modern work that treats economics as a comprehensive system and as an academic discipline.

Authorities recorded his baptism on 16 June 1723 at Kirkcaldy.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adam_Smith

Reviews

[Lance · Rating 2 out of 5]

Adam Smith's treatise on morality and ethics was far more interesting than I first anticipated. Much of the book struck me more as a work of rhetorical theory than one of philosophy or ethics. One might describe Smith's approach to morality as phenomenological; he is observing how morality comes to be or is made to appear to us. In the process, he often takes a contextual approach that shows how visions of morality come to be different in various times and places. This interesting approach is considerably complicated by Smith's use of conjectural history to structure his observations based on a hierarchized dichotomy between the civilized and the savage. HIs dissertation on the origin of languages is also worth a read, as it gives us a look into the kind of logic many Scottish enlightenment thinkers used in structuring their abstractions about history and society. Though this work is often seen as secondary to his economic theory, the influence of Smith's theories on language, rhetoric, and morality should not be understated.