First published in 1776; The Wealth of Nations is generally regarded as the foundation of contemporary economic thought. Adam Smith; a Scottish professor of moral philosophy; expounded the then-revolutionary doctrine of economic liberalism. The book’s importance was immediately recognized by Smith’s peers; and later economists have shown an unusual consensus in their admiration for his ideas. Combining economics; political theory; history; philosophy; and practical programs; Smith assumes that human self-interest is the basic psychological drive behind economics and that a natural order in the universe makes all the individual; self-interested strivings add up to the social good. His conclusion; that the best program is to leave the economic process alone and that government is useful only as an agent to preserve order and to perform routine functions; is now known as laissez-faire economics or noninterventionism. In noting for the first time the significance of the division of labor and by stating the hypothesis that a commodity’s value correlates to its labor input; Smith anticipated the writings of Karl Marx. Like Marx’s Das Capital and Machiavelli’s The Prince; his great book marked the dawning of a new historical epoch.
#1803826 in Books Harvard University Press 1996-03-01Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 1.01 x 6.16 x 9.22l; 1.23 #File Name: 0674893050368 pages
Review
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Read like a dissertation. Maybe it was. Very; very dry.By Kids Toys purchaserRead like a dissertation. Maybe it was. Very; very dry. Put it down after a chapter.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Moore offers a case study of Miami and LA in ...By NekuMoore offers a case study of Miami and LA in parallels that emphasize the migration patterns and development of Jewish life in these major cities after the second world war.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Looked more interesting with the cover photographBy D. SchwartzRealy didn't want to see photos of Paul Newman and Eva Marie Saint filming Exodus out in LA; nor did the promise of two attractive women bicycling to recruit members to Hadassah in the 1950’s pan out to a vivid description of Jewish identity in the playgrounds of LA and Miami. What I got out of it was the desire to move out to those cities came mostly from a positive experience Jewish servicemen had while shipping out from those cities during WWII. It was a real love they had for the climate and wide open spaces. But a real analysis of the brand of Jewishness that was practiced in those two warm-climate cities; apart from a too-detailed account of the rabbis who transplanted themselves and what their dynamic was; was what I was seeking. A real dialogue from some transplants was neglected. They had left extended family behind. Comments on that would have been interesting.
