[Revised entry by Samuel Fleischacker on May 29, 2025.
Changes to: Bibliography]
Adam Smith developed a comprehensive and unusual version of moral sentimentalism in his Theory of Moral Sentiments (1759, TMS). He did not expressly lay out a political philosophy in similar detail, but a distinctive set of views on politics can be extrapolated from elements of both TMS and his Wealth of Nations (1776, WN); student notes from his lectures on jurisprudence (1762 – 1763, LJ) have also helped flesh out his thoughts on governance. A central thread running through his work is an unusually strong commitment to…
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