The Authentic Adam Smith: His Life and Ideas

by James Buchan

Book Overview

Celebrated author James Buchan breathes new life into Adam Smith's legacy and the beginnings of modern economics. The Scottish philosopher Adam Smith (1723-1790) has been adopted by neoconservatives as the ideological father of unregulated business and small government. Politicians such as Margaret Thatcher and Ronald Reagan promoted Smith's famous 1776 book, An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations, as the bible of laissez-...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0393061213
• ISBN13: 9780393061215
• Release Date: August 2006
• Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company
• Length: 198 Pages
• Weight: 0.80 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 6.3" x 8.2"

Customer Reviews

Capitalism as it was meant to be

One idea stands above all others in this brief but revealing biography of the genius who invented modern economics, and that is the need to treat others as you want to be treated. Unlike modern Bible thumpers, typified by noisy ideologues who denigrate everyone who does not agree with their selfish and narrow visions, Smith was the product of an era when everything was subject to doubt, challenge, questions and new ideas. There was no status in the status quo; this was the time of intellectual ferment and democratic uprisings that eventually produced the American Revolution and the modern concept of personal freedom. Buchan provides a concise summary of Smith's 'Wealth of Nations', which offers an understanding that is quite different from today's sound-bite daffynitions. It wasn't merely church dogma that was overthrown. Science had shown the Earth was not the center of the universe. In commerce, from antiquity to the Middle Ages, luxury had been condemned as a mortal threat to body and soul which sapped the courage of men and the chastity of women. Suddenly, luxury was respectable and desirable. Early in his life, Smith had taught moral philosophy to young men studying for the Presbyterian clergy. He told his students that, in Buchan's words, "alone of all animals on this globe, man ascribes values to qualities such as colour, rarity and shape that give no superior advantage in supplying the wants of nature. Bodily needs can be easily satisfied but desires, in Smith's beautiful phrase, 'seem to be altogether endless'." His teaching wasn't based on old truths, revealed wisdom, ancient Bible verses or modern born-again faith. Instead, as Buchan writes, Smith was not examining the truth or not of any particular scentific discovery, but the sentiments that give rise to it. One of these is humanity's spontaneous love of order. Smith's belief in humanity's spontaneous love of order prompted him to look for the basics of the brand new economic conditions; in today's terms, he was looking for the "natural laws" which govern mankind. A vast range of ideas was floating about; the genius of Smith was to identify and compile those which would form the basis of a new freer economy. Although his reputation has been hijacked by opportunists who have not read, understand or sympathize with his ideas; Buchan shows Smith was vastly more humane than the crass and utterly selfish greed of the neocons. Smith was always uneasy about a society that is forever gaping at the rich and fortunate at the expense of the wise and the kind. "Greed is good" is not one of Smith's principles. Buchan has done much the same in this book; selecting judiciously from the vast range of ideas, opinions and influences that inspired Smith. England and France were intellectual cauldrons for new ideas; but, these two old societies also had powerful incumbent Establishments that crushed many reforms. Only the United States, which didn't yet have an in

An Excellent Concise Treatment of Smith

There is no good substitute for reading Adam Smith's own beautiful prose. But if you don't have the time or the inclination to do so, I would recommend The Authentic Adam Smith. Buchan summarizes Smith's life and ideas. Of special note is his ability to convey Smith's humanity. I have a few minor quibbles about emphasis, but overall the book is accurate, readable and concise. Not many books of this type can make a similar claim.

A Concise Introduction to Adam Smith

This is a relatively short (145 pages of text) introduction to the life and thought of Adam Smith. I found it to be an extremely worthwhile read. I have recently become aware that the trend toward shorter books, far from resulting in "dumbed down" works, has produced some very insightful discussions--Ted White's recent short book on Justice Holmes being one example. This fine effort, by the author of the definitive analysis of Edinburgh during the Scotish Enlightenment, is further proof of this development. The author skillfully melds a biography of Smith's life with a concise examination of some of his major theories and ideas. He principally focuses upon the "Theory of Moral Sentiments" and (of course) "The Wealth of Nations," but he touches upon a number of other Smith writings and theories along the way. Quite a lot of useful information is packed into this brief study, and the notes reflect the author's thorough command of the pertinent material. One of the author's goals is to correct what he considers to be some fundamental misinterpretations of Smith's ideas, the "invisibile hand" being a prime example. There is some very interesting discussion of Smith's close relationship with David Hume, and various other figures from the Scottish Enlightenment also make appearances as well. Compact yet expansive in scope makes this fine book very unique, and a worthy addition to the literature on Smith and the Scottish the Enlightenment.

An excellent clarification on Adam Smith capitalism. It is not what you think.

This is a most readable and excellent book. From an academic standpoint, it has several merits. The book's first merit is that it serves as a very good abstract of Adam Smith's lengthy and difficult tomes [Wealth of Nations in 1776 and The Theory of Moral Sentiments, 1759]. By today's standards, these books are unreadable. Buchan has painstakingly studied these books and pass on their information in a fresh, lively, and modern language. It should be required reading for any introduction to economics course. Its second merit is that it clarifies Adam Smith's economic thoughts. Most everyone, included leading contemporary economists, consider Smith the intellectual father of free-wheeling capitalism, globalization, and free-trade. They lean on Smith to give themselves undisputable arguments. If one's thoughts are aligned with Smith, they become unquestionable. So the logic goes. But, even the majority of economics PhDs have not read Wealth of Nations and close to none have read Moral Sentiments. Over the centuries, the interpretation of Smith's work has veered increasingly to the right and into a libertarian domain. But, the interpretation has become disconnected from the original work for a simple reason: absence of reading the original work. Per Buchan, Smith's thoughts on the "laissez faire" capitalism are far more nuanced than current interpretations suggest. Smith showed a very sophisticated understanding of when markets work and when they don't. When monopolies or government are in better position to deliver certain services than free-market competitors. He also showed much concern for ethics in commerce at both the individual and organizational levels. It is as if he anticipated the potential abuse that the absence of ethics would cause (Drexel Burnham, Enron). So, Buchan rectifies for us what Adam Smith's economics were about. It was not about libertarian capitalism, but more about ethical and optimized capitalism. This is a major distinction. The book's third merit is to place Adam Smith's mind and life in historical context of the great Scottish Enlightenment. You see Smith interact with many of his contemporaries, particularly David Hume. Anyone interested in either history or economics will really enjoy this book. As mentioned, the book imparts so much information and clarifies much misinformation on the subject. If you enjoy this book, I also recommend Buchan's "Crowded Genius: The Scottish Enlightenment."

A very readable way to get some context for the life of Adam Smith and his writings (including "The

Adam Smith is a towering figure in modern economics and is one of the Titans of those who believe in free markets. We use Smith's term "invisible hand" to describe the way forces of competition and self-interest end up producing (on average) the right amount of goods and services to help the economy grown and meet the needs of the populace. The ideas of Adam Smith, or at least the popular notion of what his ideas are, have become so dominant that even "progressive" politicians, journalists, and economists, have tried to find the source of their world view in Smith's writings. This interesting book by James Buchan makes the argument that too many people from every political stripe (including his conservative - free market acolytes) quote Smith too carelessly and without proper context. Buchan has spent decades of his life working on The Scottish Enlightenment (18th century Scottish History) and provides us with the development of Smith's ideas in the context of the broader development of Scottish philosophical thought. We learn about Smith's career, his writing of both the "Theory of Moral Sentiments" (and what its ideas were) and "The Wealth of Nations". Buchan shows us Smith's friendships including the importance of David Hume to Smith as well as the competitive jealousies of lesser thinkers. Buchan is a good source for the material in this book because of the work he did in writing "Crowded with Genius" a few years back. He takes the realities of the biography of his subject and the real history of the times too seriously to allow Smith to be misused into supporting anachronistic ideas. While this is a short work, I found many things in it to be valuable and informative. And while I can certainly grant Buchan's larger point that Smith was no free market capitalist a la Milton Friedman, I cannot accept the idea that all political persuasions draw on Smith equally or with the same sense of heritage. It is important to note that inspiration can make for a strange genealogy. There are some who follow and develop a tradition more or less directly and faithfully (Mozart of Haydn and C.P.E. Bach), there are those who follow a tradition and then break into new realms (Beethoven of Mozart and Haydn), there are those who reach back to find reasons for what they are doing to explain their own work (Schoenberg of Brahms "The Revolutionary"), and then there are those who use the past to provide legitimacy for something new (say, the Norman monarchy in England using the legends of King Arthur for their right to rule). Are all equally heirs to their claimed forbearers? Are all equally heirs? Of course, you must arrive at your own conclusions. It is plain to me that there are distinctions and that Milton Friedman and modern free market capitalism is more of an heir to Smith than are nouveau British Socialists trying to cobble together a lineage to Smith for political advantage. In any case, Smith's great works are more often referred to th