Johann Friedrich Pfeiffer on Adam Smith: An Early Reception of Adam Smith in the German States

Different from the usual portrayal that it was not until the turn of the nineteenth century that Adam Smith’s work became influential, the extensive commentary by Johann Friedrich Pfeiffer ( shows an immediate effect on German economic discourse. Pfeiffer, who lived from 1717 until 1787, was as a late and liberal cameralist. Pfeiffer was a prolific writer and well-known scholar during his lifetime. He lived so close to 1789 that his works were only briefly received, and he was not able to leave a lasting legacy on cameralist thought, which withered after the French Revolution. The significance of Smith was recognized by Pfeiffer, placing Smith above most of his German-speaking contemporaries. Both Pfeiffer and Smith addressed many similar topics and Pfeiffer expresses his agreement with large parts of Smith’s Wealth of Nations. However, Pfeiffer criticizes Smith because of Smith’s general support of free trade and his idealistic concept of a system of natural liberty. Pfeiffer, in contrast, was much more in favor of state interventions, given the lack of knowledge and irrational behavior of humans. While their political points of view differ, there are many theoretical similarities between them.