The Wisdom of Adam Smith

by Adam Smith

Book Overview

Adam Smith was an eloquent man of considerable philosophical and historical learning. His most incisive and enduring observations are collected here on subjects ranging from political and economic history to morals, art, education, war, and the American colonies. Throughout, notes an admirer in the introduction, "his writing is blessedly free of that use of jargon (and mathematics) that characterizes most of the modern materials in economics. His...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0913966223
• ISBN13: 9780913966228
• Release Date: June 1977
• Publisher: Liberty Fund
• Length: 234 Pages
• Weight: 0.75 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 5.5" x 8.2"
• Age Range: 18 to 10 years
• Grade Range: Postsecondary to Grade 5

Customer Reviews

Fascinating stuff!

Adam Smith was not JUST the author of "The Wealth of Nations." That would be quite enough to justify his place in history, but his "Theory of the Moral Sentiments" is another classic --- although less frequently read. I was just looking through it tonight, and came across this thought. (I'll paraphrase to make it shorter, and hope that it works out!) In every society known to man, there has been an upper-crust and a lower-crust. They always have different moral codes. The poor folks are much more severe about their morality: they loathe and despise gambling, drinking, fornication, and all the rest, because they have seen (all too often) that such things lead DIRECTLY TO RUIN. The rich folks, on the other hand, tend to be much more "tolerant" of these foibles, because, after all, someone who is wealthy & privileged can undoubtedly survive years of profligacy, gambling, drinking, and whoring, and still remain "somewhat whole." The one thing he cannot withstand is financial ruin, as Samuel Butler pointed out. Right or wrong? Do we now understand why Whoopi Goldberg and the Hollywood Elite came out in defense of Roman Polanski? Heck, all you need to do is read Adam Smith!

All Time Bathroom Reader!

This book provides fascinating insight on all topics from love to war to farming to manufacturing from an economic point of view. You do not need to subscribe to the classical theory to gain wisdom from this book. You don't even need an economics background to appreciate Adam's insight.