After David Hume’s influence on British politics, Adam Smith continued his work in political philosophy, particularly with regard to questions of economic growth and prosperity. His views on this were greatly influenced by the theories he had read about in France, particularly those of Jean-Jacques Rousseau. While Hume tended to focus on moral issues, Smith focused instead on what happens when people act “out of self-interest” and the consequences of this for social cooperation. In The Theory of Moral Sentiments (1759) Smith described “the natural sympathy through which each man feels for all others as himself”. This led him to suggest that people act cooperatively because it is in their own interests to do so. Thus, it is not just morally right to help someone else, it is actually good for you. He argued that the desire to gain profit leads people to enter into mutually beneficial relationships with each other. He developed this idea further in The Wealth of Nations, arguing that this is why economies grow under conditions of free trade. With all his work emerged economic liberalism that advocated the freedom of markets and economies with the least interference from the government.
Introduction
How do we really define Philosophy? The Greek word φιλοσοφία – Philosophia. Or as the term has been coined by modern Western language – Philosophy. The literal meaning of this word is relatively static. Derived from its Greek origin it comprises two separate words...
