Adam Smith: His Life, Thought, and Legacy

Published by Princeton University Press 2016

Adam Smith

His Life, Thought, and Legacy

Edited by: Ryan Hanley

https://doi.org/10.1515/9781400873487

Overview
Contents

About this book

Adam Smith (1723–90) is perhaps best known as one of the first champions of the free market and is widely regarded as the founding father of capitalism. From his ideas about the promise and pitfalls of globalization to his steadfast belief in the preservation of human dignity, his work is as relevant today as it was in the eighteenth century. Here, Ryan Hanley brings together some of the world's finest scholars from across a variety of disciplines to offer new perspectives on Smith’s life, thought, and enduring legacy.

Contributors provide succinct and accessible discussions of Smith’s landmark works and the historical context in which he wrote them, the core concepts of Smith’s social vision, and the lasting impact of Smith’s ideas in both academia and the broader world. They reveal other sides of Smith beyond the familiar portrayal of him as the author of the invisible hand, emphasizing his deep interests in such fields as rhetoric, ethics, and jurisprudence. Smith emerges not just as a champion of free markets but also as a thinker whose unique perspective encompasses broader commitments to virtue, justice, equality, and freedom.

An essential introduction to Adam Smith’s life and work, this incisive and thought-provoking book features contributions from leading figures such as Nicholas Phillipson, Amartya Sen, and John C. Bogle. It demonstrates how Smith’s timeless insights speak to contemporary concerns such as growth in the developing world and the future of free trade, and how his influence extends to fields ranging from literature and philosophy to religion and law.

Author / Editor information

Ryan Patrick Hanley holds the Mellon Distinguished Professorship in Political Science at Marquette University. He is the author of Adam Smith and the Character of Virtue and the editor of the Penguin Classics edition of Adam Smith's The Theory of Moral Sentiments.

Reviews

"Just in case you thought Adam Smith . . . was simply the father of modern economics, this book is a weighty reminder of the scope and ambition of his intellectual project."---Jane Fuller, Financial World

"Hanley has assembled a remarkable group of contributors who cover the astonishing range of Smith's interests and writings. There are philosophers, political theorists, economists, theologians, and historians, and some welcome political and ideological diversity as well. There is a great deal of value here for both novices and seasoned scholars across a variety of disciplines."—Jerry Z. Muller, author of Capitalism and the Jews

"The lively and lucid writing styles and the variety of themes and topics presented in the book are bound to invite the tourist to look further, while the variety of topics on offer will draw seasoned travelers to explore by-ways they might have missed on earlier voyages into Smith territory."---Sarah Otten, International Dialogue

"One of Choice's Outstanding Academic Titles for 2016"

"This brilliantly conceived collection brings together leading scholars from a variety of disciplines and walks of life to reflect on Adam Smith's life, thought, influence, and legacy. There is a great deal of value here to both the novice and seasoned scholar. This volume is now the best companion to reading Adam Smith."—Jerry Z. Muller, author of Adam Smith in His Time and Ours: Designing the Decent Society

"This wide-ranging collection is indispensable for Smith scholars and anyone interested in his works. . . . Scholarship on Smith has grown considerably in the last twenty years, and this collection is a welcome addition to this exciting area of research."

"Hanley has assembled an excellent collection of essays on the life and work of Adam Smith. Thirty-two Smith scholars from philosophy, economics, history, political science, English, and law contribute insightful and accessible chapters exploring Smith's social vision and its relevance in various contexts over time. . . . Overall, it would be hard to find a more balanced, comprehensive, and well-documented presentation of Smith's role in forwarding Enlightenment thinking from 18th-century Europe to China in recent decades. There is much in these essays for both seasoned Smith followers and those new to his work."

"An excellent and very useful compendium of every conceivable aspect of modern scholarship's understanding of the life and work of the author of The Wealth of Nations."

"By including dozens of authors from a variety of perspectives, Hanley has put together a deep, thoughtful, and expansive volume examining Adam Smith, his works, his ideas, and his influence on the world up to today."---Paul Mueller, EH.net,

"This book provides an up-to-date guide to the entire range and breadth of Adam Smith's work, life, and influence. It weaves across disciplines and genres, providing a compendious account and covering all possible bases."—Duncan Kelly, author of The Propriety of Liberty

""No matter what part of the book it is to which readers turn for a succinct account, or dip into more casually, they will be informed and enlightened."---Christopher J. Berry, Journal of Scottish Philosophy

Topics

Frontmatter Publicly Available Download PDF	i
CONTENTS Publicly Available Download PDF	v
PREFACE Ryan Patrick Hanley Publicly Available Download PDF	ix
ABBREVIATIONS Publicly Available Download PDF	xiii
NOTES ON CONTRIBUTORS Publicly Available Download PDF	xv
PART I . INTRODUCTION: TEXTS AND CONTEXT
1. THE BIOGRAPHY OF ADAM SMITH James Buchan Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	3
2. THE LECTURES ON RHETORIC AND BELLES LETTRES Vivienne Brown Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	17
3. THE THEORY OF MORAL SENTIMENTS Eric Schliesser Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	33
4. THE LECTURES ON JURISPRUDENCE Knud Haakonssen Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	48
5. THE WEALTH OF NATIONS Jerry Evensky Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	67
6. THE ESSAYS ON PHILOSOPHICAL SUBJECTS Craig Smith Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	89
7. SMITH AND THE SCOTTISH ENLIGHTENMENT Nicholas Phillipson Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	105
PART II. SMITH’S SOCIAL VISION
8. ADAM SMITH ON LIVING A LIFE Ryan Patrick Hanley Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	123
9. ADAM SMITH: SELF- INTEREST AND THE VIRTUES Leonidas Montes Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	138
10. ADAM SMITH ON EQUALITY Elizabeth Anderson Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	157
11. ADAM SMITH ON JUSTICE AND INJUSTICE Nicholas Wolterstorff Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	173
12. ADAM SMITH AND THE SYMPATHETIC IMAGINATION Remy Debes Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	192
13. ADAM SMITH ON FREEDOM David Schmidtz Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	208
PART III. SMITH AND ECONOMICS
14. ADAM SMITH AND MODERN ECONOMICS Agnar Sandmo Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	231
15. ADAM SMITH AND THE HISTORY OF ECONOMIC THOUGHT: THE CASE OF BANKING Maria Pia Paganelli Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	247
16. ADAM SMITH AND EXPERIMENTAL ECONOMICS: SENTIMENTS TO WEALTH Vernon L. Smith Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	262
17. ADAM SMITH AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT Amartya Sen Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	281
PART IV. SMITH BEYOND ECONOMICS
18. ADAM SMITH AND RELIGION Gordon Graham Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	305
19. ADAM SMITH AND POLITICAL THEORY Lisa Hill Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	321
20. ADAM SMITH AND MODERN ETHICS Lisa Herzog Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	340
21. ADAM SMITH AND FEMINIST ETHICS: SYMPATHY, RESENTMENT, AND SOLIDARITY Jacqueline Taylor Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	354
22. ADAM SMITH’S JURISPRUDENCE: RESENTMENT, PUNISHMENT, JUSTICE Chad Flanders Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	371
23. ADAM SMITH AND RHETORIC Stephen McKenna Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	387
24. ADAM SMITH’S NARRATIVE LINE Karen Valihora Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	405
25. ADAM SMITH AND THE HISTORY OF PHILOSOPHY Michaël Biziou Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	422
26. ADAM SMITH AND ENLIGHTENMENT STUDIES Fredrik Albritton Jonsson Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	443
PART V. SMITH BEYOND THE ACADEMY
27. ADAM SMITH: SOME POPULAR USES AND ABUSES Gavin Kennedy Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	461
28. ADAM SMITH AND THE LEFT Samuel Fleischacker Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	478
29. ADAM SMITH AND THE RIGHT James R. Otteson Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	494
30. ADAM SMITH IN CHINA: FROM IDEOLOGY TO ACADEMIA Luo Wei-Dong Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	512
31. ADAM SMITH AND SHAREHOLDER CAPITALISM John C. Bogle Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	525
32. ADAM SMITH AND FREE TRADE Douglas A. Irwin Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	542
INDEX Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	559