AN AUTHENTIC ACCOUNT OF ADAM SMITH Gavin Kennedy An Authentic Account of Adam Smith Gavin Kennedy An Authentic Account of Adam Smith Gavin Kennedy Edinburgh, UK ISBN 978-3-319-63801-0 ISBN 978-3-319-63802-7 (eBook) DOI 10.1007/978-3-319-63802-7 Library of Congress Control Number: 2017949478 © The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s) 2017 This work is subject to copyright All rights are solely and exclusively licensed by the Publisher, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfilms or in any other physical way, and transmission or information storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology now known or hereafter developed The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc in this publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use The publisher, the authors and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and information in this book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication Neither the publisher nor the authors or the editors give a warranty, express or implied, with respect to the material contained herein or for any errors or omissions that may have been made The publisher remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations Cover credit: Heritage Image Partnership Ltd/Alamy Stock Photo Printed on acid-free paper This Palgrave Macmillan imprint is published by Springer Nature The registered company is Springer International Publishing AG The registered company address is: Gewerbestrasse 11, 6330 Cham, Switzerland For Archie Morrice and Alexander Rolland Exhibits List Chapter “Adam Smith on Metaphors” Exhibit no 1: Adam Smith’s Figures of Speech and Metaphors in The Theory of Moral Sentiments (6th edition: 1790) Exhibit no 2: Adam Smith’s use of Figures of Speech and Metaphors in the Wealth of Nations Chapter “Adam Smith and the ‘Invisible Hand’” Exhibit 3: Some General Theological References to ‘an Invisible Hand’, from Ancient Times to the eighteenth-century Exhibit 4: Early Post-Smithian References to the ‘Invisible Hand’ 1857– 1899 Exhibit 5: Some of Smith’s Examples of Entrepreneurial Actions that Detrimentally Affected The Public Good Chapter “Smith’s Alleged Religiosity” Exhibit Theology References in Wealth of Nations Exhibit Theology References in TMS vii Preface Academic authors owe much to their peers and predecessors My first conversation on Adam Smith was with the late Professor Andrew Skinner of Glasgow University, whom I met when we both happened to visit the department of economics at Strathclyde University, where I had been an undergraduate and postgraduate student in the 1960s I was then a lecturer in economics at Brunel University in West London We fell into conversation and I mentioned my preparatory work on a series of lectures on the economics of defence for UK senior Army officers, at The National Defence College, Latimer, having been assigned by my then head of department, Professor John Vaizey, to stand in at short notice because the regular lecturer was seriously ill Andrew recommended opening with Adam Smith’s statements on defence in Wealth of Nations as the ‘first duty of the sovereign that of protecting the society from the violence and invasion of other independent societies, by means of military force’ [WN V.1.a.1 p 689] I took Andrew’s advice and read the relevant chapter in Wealth of Nations This eventually led to my abiding interest in the life and Works of Adam Smith When Andrew and I met over the following decades at seminars and conferences on the history of economic thought, or when ix x Preface we conversed by telephone, we discussed aspects of Adam Smith’s life and Works, of which Andrew was the leading authority I owe much in the approach that follows herein to Andrew’s insight and advice, and to his many publications, though I exculpate him completely for any errors or omissions that may have crept into what follows I also developed a close academic relationship with the late Professor Ian Simpson Ross, whose The Life of Adam Smith (2005) is the definitive biography of Adam Smith I had the pleasure of occasional face-toface discussions with Ian when he visited his native country of Scotland from his home in Vancouver, Canada, his lovely soft Dundonian Scot’s accent as clear as if he had never left Dundee We also exchanged correspondence on Adam Smith, for which help and insights, I was both grateful and encouraged Another influence on my thinking came from a talk I gave in Edinburgh on Adam Smith, after which I was approached by Norman Butcher, a geologist and tutor at the Open University, whose interest was in James Hutton, the early geologist and Enlightenment colleague of Adam Smith For many years afterwards Norman became a significant element in my unfolding interests in the Enlightenment I accompanied Norman on several field visits to important geological sites at Edinburgh’s extinct volcano where Hutton’s excavations can still be seen and down the coast to Siccar Point, where sea erosion had exposed the powerful effects of geological forces on molten rock formations in very ancient times, known as ‘Hutton’s unconformity’ Norman and I regularly conversed, and his enthusiasm for knowledge about Hutton matched mine for Smith He provided insights into how the Enlightenment was a cooperative effort by a unique group of Edinburgh’s finest eighteenth-century scholars Other scholarly influences, to whom I owe much for their insights and opinions, and, indeed, also for their criticism of my interpretations, include Dr Craig Smith, Profs Christopher Berry, Keith Lumsden, Alec Scott, Ryan Hanley, Sandra Peart, Mark Blaug, Paul Walker, Brandon Dupont, Daniel B Klein, Paul Oslington, and Sir Alan Peacock, though these conversations revealed many scholarly differences in our approaches to Adam Smith and his Works However, I Preface xi must record that despite our occasional differences of interpretation, I benefitted from their insights, challenges and perspectives Of course, authors must be aware of how much they owe to the professional expertise of a publisher’s staff Palgrave is no exception This is my third book with Palgrave and as with the first two, writing it has been a pleasurable experience Edinburgh, UK Gavin Kennedy Acknowledgements The prime source to Adam Smith is the Glasgow Edition of the the Works and Correspondence of Adam Smith (©), Oxford University Press, reproduced with the permission of Oxford University Press CORR Correspondence of Adam Smith 1987 ed E C Mossner, Ian Simpson Ross, 2nd edition ED Early Draft of Wealth of Nations 1763 included in Lectures on Jurisprudence EPS Essays on Philosophical Subjects 1795 (posthumous) ed W D Wightman J C Bryce LJ Lectures on Jurisprudence, 1983, ed R L Meek, D.D Raphael, P.G.Stein LRBL Lectures on Rhetoric and Belles Lettres 1983, ed J C Bryce Includes Considerations Concerning the First Formation of original and compound Languages [1761] TMS The Theory of Moral Sentiments (1759) 1976 D D, Raphael, A L Macfie WN An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations [1776] 1976, ed R H Campbell, A S Skinner, W B Todd xiii ... 1793 Account of the Life and Writings of Adam Smith, LL.D Transactions of the Royal Society of Edinburgh, January 21 and March 18 Warsh, D 2006 Knowledge and the Wealth of Nations: A Story of Economic... 2: Adam Smith s use of Figures of Speech and Metaphors in the Wealth of Nations Chapter Adam Smith and the ‘Invisible Hand’” Exhibit 3: Some General Theological References to an Invisible Hand’,... biography of Adam Smith I had the pleasure of occasional face-toface discussions with Ian when he visited his native country of Scotland from his home in Vancouver, Canada, his lovely soft Dundonian