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Adam Smith

Adam Smith was a Scottish moral philosopher and political economist, professor at Glasgow and a leading figure of the Scottish Enlightenment. His Theory of…

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1723 – 1790 · Kirkcaldy, Glasgow, Oxford, Edinburgh

Traditions: Modern European

Adam Smith was a Scottish moral philosopher and political economist, professor at Glasgow and a leading figure of the Scottish Enlightenment. His Theory of Moral Sentiments grounds morality in sympathy and the judgement of an impartial spectator. His Wealth of Nations analysed the division of labour, markets and the growth of national wealth, and became a founding text of economics. Read together, the two books show exchange resting on moral foundations rather than self-interest alone.

Key ideas

  • Moral judgement grows from sympathy: imaginatively entering others' situations.
  • We judge our own conduct by imagining how an impartial spectator would see it.
  • The division of labour greatly increases productivity, though Smith also warned of its stultifying effects on workers.
  • Individuals pursuing their own gain within a framework of justice can promote the common good, as if led by an invisible hand.

Major works

  • The Theory of Moral Sentiments (1759)
  • An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations (1776)

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