Adam Smith's Theory of Moral Sentiments: On Morals and Why They Matter to a Liberal Society of Free People and Free Markets

摘要

Adam Smith (1723-1790) held the Chair of Moral Philosophy at Glasgow University from 1752 to 1763. Smith sought to do for moral philosophy what Isaac Newton had done for natural philosophy: to imagine and represent those invisible connecting principles that determine the course of nature. Newton's natural philosophical realm encompassed all in nature that envelopes humankind. Smith's moral philosophical realm was humankind. During his years at Glasgow, Smith lectured on human nature, the development of societies' systems of ethics, the evolution of societies' legal systems and the relationship of these social and political institutions to the wealth of nations. His years of teaching and inquiry at Glasgow established the foundation for his most famous work, An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations, initially published in 1776, which explores how markets function in a liberal society and the instrumental value of an effective market system to such a society.