Economic Sentiments: Adam Smith, Condorcet, and the Enlightenment

365 Pages·2001·1.29 MB·English

by  Emma Rothschild

y
Economic Sentiments
p
o
C

m
a
x
E
Copyright © 2001 The President and Fellows of Harvard College
y
p
o
C

m
a
x
E
Copyright © 2001 The President and Fellows of Harvard College
y
ECONOMIC
SENTIMENTS
p
Adam Smith, Condorcet,
and the Enlightenment
o
EMMA ROTHSCHILD
C

m
a
x
E
HARVARDUNIVERSITYPRESS
Cambridge,Massachusetts,andLondon,England
Copyright © 2001 The President and Fellows of Harvard College
y
Copyright©2001bythePresidentandFellowsofHarvardCollege
Allrightsreserved
PrintedintheUnitedStatesofAmerica
p
Secondprinting,2002
FirstHarvardUniversityPresspaperbackedition,2002
LibraryofCongressCataloging-in-PublicaotionData
Rothschild,Emma,1948–
Economicsentiments : AdamSmith,Condorcet,andthe
Enlightenment / EmmaRothschild.
p. cm. C
Includesbibliographicalreferencesandindex.
ISBN0-674-00489-2(cloth)
ISBN0-674-00837-5(pbk.)
1.Economics—History—18thcentury. 2.Freeenterprise—History—
18thcentury. 3.Liberalism—History—18thcentury. 4.Smith,Adam,

1723–1790. 5.Condorcet,Jean-Antoine-NicolasdeCaritat,marquisde,
1743–1794. I.Title.
m
HB83.R682001
330.15(cid:1)3—dc21 00-053943
a
x
E
Copyright © 2001 The President and Fellows of Harvard College
y
ToAmartya
p
o
C

m
a
x
E
Copyright © 2001 The President and Fellows of Harvard College
y
p
o
C

m
a
x
E
Copyright © 2001 The President and Fellows of Harvard College
CONTENTS y
p
o
Introduction 1
1 EconomicDispositions 7
C
TheHistoryofSentiments 7
CivilizedandCommercialSociety 9
TheUnfrightenedMind 12
TwoKindsofEnlightenment 15
TheDevilHimself 17

HeroicDispositions 20
ASortofInnerShumddering 22
TheColdLightofReasonandtheWarmthofEconomicLife 25
SeeingtheStateasinaPicture 29
IndulgenceandIndifference 34
TheLightofHistory 39
TheEnlightenmentandthePresent 47
a
2 AdamSmithandConservativeEconomics 52
ThisFamousPhilosopher 52
Scotlandinthe1790s 55
ExconomicandPoliticalFreedom 57
TheLiberalRewardofLabor 61
One-SidedRationalisticLiberalism 64
Smith’sRealSentiments 66
E
3 CommerceandtheState 72
AReciprocalDependence 72
Scarcities,Dearths,andFamines 73
PovertyandGeneralEquilibrium 76
Turgot’sPoliciesagainstFamine 78
InterpretationsofSmithandTurgot 81
TheLapseofTime 83
Copyright © 2001 The President and Fellows of Harvard College
vviiiiii Contents
4 ApprenticeshipandInsecurity 87
AStrangeAdventure 87
ItIsButEquity,Besides 88 y
CorporationsandCompetition 90
EducationandApprenticeship 95
AStateofNonage 100
p
TheApprenticeship:ADigressionontheSlaveTrade 105
UncertainJurisprudence 107
HistoryandInstitutions 113
5 TheBloodyandInvisibleHand o116
TheInvisibleHandofJupiter 116
Tremble,UnfortunateKing! 118
IntentionsandInterests 121
PoliticalInfluence 126 C
ClericalSystems 129
Smith’s“Stoicism” 131
OrderandDesign 134
APersuasiveDevice 136
ExplanationandUnd erstanding 138
GreatestPossibleValues 143
m
EvolvedOrders 146
TwoShortcomingsofLiberalThought 153
6 EconomicandPoliticalChoice 157
RatonWasQuiteAstonished... 157
GeneralEconomicInterdependence 160
a
GivingtheImpressionofDoingNothing 162
TheSoulDiscouraged 165
Poverty,Taxes,andUnsalubriousFactories 169
FormalMethods 175
x
SocialChoiceandEconomicProcedures 180
DiscussionsandConstitutions 186
PelionandOssa 188
E
7 CondorcetandtheConflictofValues 195
Cold,DescriptiveCartesianReason 195
DiversityandUniformity 197
TheIndissolubleChain 203
CivilizedConflict 204
InconsistentUniversalism 206
DomesticVirtues 209
TheImaginaryEnlightenment 212
TheLibertyofThoughtandDiscussion 214
Copyright © 2001 The President and Fellows of Harvard College
Contents iixx
8 AFatherlessWorld 218
ADifferentEnlightenment 218
SmithandCondorcet 221 y
UncertaintyandIrresolution 223
ASystemofSentiments 228
CivilizedPoliticalDiscussion 232
p
EconomicSentiments 236
AWorldUnrestored 246
SuitableEquality 250
o
Notes 255
Acknowledgments 343
Index 345 C

m
a
x
E
Copyright © 2001 The President and Fellows of Harvard College
y
p
o
C

m
a
x
E
Copyright © 2001 The President and Fellows of Harvard College