Adam Smith and Yan Fu: Western Economics in Chinese Perspective

101 Pages·2022·1.82 MB·English

by  Cheng-chung Lai

Cheng-chung Lai
Adam Smith and
Yan Fu: Western
Economics
in Chinese
Perspective
Adam Smith and Yan Fu: Western Economics
in Chinese Perspective
Yan Fu’s translation of The Wealth of Nations, cover and first page (1902)
Cheng-chung Lai
Adam Smith and Yan Fu:
Western Economics
in Chinese Perspective
Cheng-chung Lai
Emeritus Professor
Department of Economics
National Tsing Hua University
Hsinchu, Taiwan
ISBN 978-981-19-6572-2 ISBN 978-981-19-6573-9 (eBook)
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-6573-9
Translation from the Chinese language edition: 亞當史密斯與嚴復《: 國富論》與中國 (Adam Smith and
Yan Fu: The Wealth of Nations and China) by Cheng-chung Lai, © San Min Book 2002, Taipei, Taiwan.
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Acknowledgements
This English adaption is based on a Chinese version 亚当史密斯与严复:《国富论
》与中国, 台北: 三民书局, 2002; 浙江大学出版社, 2009; 上海格致出版社, 2023.
I am grateful to San Min Book (Taipei, Taiwan), the original 2002 publisher of this
book, for the permission of this adaption.
I try to render it in a style suitable for Western readers by omitting Chinese-
specific issues and add examples from Yan Fu’s translations and comments, side by
side with Adam Smith’s original texts. As the main messages remain unchanged and
new studies on this topic were limited, I only made minor updates and revisions.
Major parts of the first four chapters are taken from the following three papers:
(1) “Adam Smith and Yan Fu: Western Economics in Chinese Perspective,” Journal of
European Economic History, 1989, 18(2):371–82. (2) “Translations of The Wealth of
Nations,” Journal of European Economic History, 1996, 25(2):467–500. (3) “Recep-
tions of The Wealth of Nations,” The European Legacy, 1996, 1(7):2069–83. These
three papers were also appeared in Adam Smith across Nations: Translations and
Receptions of The Wealth of Nations, Oxford University Press, 2000, slightly revised
as two Overviews and Sect. 1.2.
With generous supports from the Harvard-Yenching Institute (1992–3), I used the
Vanderblue Memorial Collection of Smithiana (located at the Kress Library, Baker
Library of Harvard Business School) to work out Adam Smith across Nations (2000).
Chapters 2 and 3 in the present monograph are based on its two overviews.
For recent related studies, there is a mini-symposium “Adam Smith in international
context” in Adam Smith Review, Volume 9, 2017. It contains one paper on Germany
and two on China. Google Search shows that there are a few new papers on “Smith
and Yan Fu” (in English); they are mostly on the cultural and translation aspects, not
on economic issues.
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Contents
1 Overview ....................................................... 1
1 Proposition and Framework .................................... 1
2 Yan Fu Studies ............................................... 4
3 Life and Times of Yan Fu ...................................... 5
4 Translation and Publication ..................................... 6
2 Spread of The Wealth of Nations .................................. 9
1 Adam Smith’s Economic Doctrines .............................. 9
2 Contents of The Wealth of Nations ............................... 11
3 Translations of WN ........................................... 12
3.1 Introduction ............................................. 14
3.2 Speed and Number of Translations .......................... 14
3.3 Quality of Translation ..................................... 17
3 Receptions of The Wealth of Nations ............................... 21
1 Method of Analysis ........................................... 21
2 Motives for Introducing WN .................................... 23
3 Methods of Transmission ....................................... 24
4 Receptions ................................................... 25
4.1 Difficulties of Reception .................................. 25
4.2 Impact on Decision-Makers ................................ 26
4.3 Free Trade and Laissez-Faire ............................... 27
4.4 Lack of Interest in Smithian Theory ......................... 28
4.5 Reception By Left-Wing Readers ........................... 29
5 Objections ................................................... 30
6 Smith’s Impact in Retrospect ................................... 31
4 Traduttore Traditore ............................................ 33
1 Motivation of Translation ...................................... 34
2 Misunderstanding and Distortion ................................ 35
3 The 310 Translator’s Notes ..................................... 37
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viii Contents
5 Yan Fu’s Understanding of The Wealth of Nations .................. 41
1 General Economic Arguments .................................. 41
1.1 Pasture Yields As Good a Rent As Corn Land,
and Sometimes a Greater One .............................. 41
1.2 On the Determination of the Value of Gold and Silver ......... 42
1.3 Interest Rates and Precious Metals ......................... 44
1.4 The Fall in the Price of Corn Since the Establishment
of the Bounty is Due to Other Causes ....................... 45
1.5 On Mercantilism ......................................... 46
2 Criticisms on Smith’s Doctrines ................................. 46
2.1 Theories of Rent ......................................... 46
2.2 Law of Supply and Demand ............................... 49
2.3 Corn as Standard of Value ................................. 50
2.4 Navigation Acts .......................................... 51
2.5 Meaningless Passages .................................... 51
3 Praises for Smith’s Analyses .................................... 52
3.1 Basic Attitude ........................................... 52
3.2 Anti-bullionism ......................................... 52
3.3 On Monopoly ........................................... 52
3.4 Some Defects ........................................... 53
6 Yan Fu’s Economic Ideas ........................................ 55
1 Problems of Chinese Economy .................................. 55
1.1 Silver Standard .......................................... 55
1.2 Lack of Standard in Measures and Specifications ............. 57
1.3 Trade Deficits ............................................ 58
1.4 Tax Corruption ........................................... 58
1.5 Public Debt ............................................. 59
2 Economic Liberalism .......................................... 60
2.1 Anti-protectionism ....................................... 60
2.2 Anti-monopoly .......................................... 61
2.3 Economic Liberalism ..................................... 63
3 Other Comments .............................................. 64
3.1 Anti-commerce and Pro-agriculture ......................... 64
3.2 Saving or Prodigality? .................................... 65
3.3 War and Economy ........................................ 66
3.4 Economic Mentality of the Mandarins ....................... 67
4 Sources of Yan Fu’s Ideas ...................................... 67
7 Epilogue ........................................................ 69
1 Response .................................................... 69
2 Evaluation ................................................... 72
3 Final Remarks ................................................ 74
Contents ix
Appendices ........................................................ 77
Appendix A: Foreword to the First Chinese Edition of The Wealth
of Nations (1901) ....................................... 77
Appendix B: Preface to the First Chinese Edition of The Wealth
of Nations (1901) ....................................... 82
Appendix C: Liang Qichao’s Comments on The Wealth of Nations
(1902–4) ............................................... 84
References ......................................................... 91
About the Author
Cheng-chung Lai ([email protected]) is Emeritus Professor at National Tsing
Hua University (Taiwan), with three decades of experience in teaching economic
history and history of economics thought. His books in English include: Adam
Smith across Nations: Translations and Receptions of The Wealth of Nations, Oxford
University Press (2000); Braudel’s Historiography Reconsidered (2004); History of
Economic Ideas in 20 Talks (2022). He was educated in Taiwan (BA) and Belgium
(MA), received his doctorate from École des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales,
Paris.
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