IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/hal/journl/hal-00921187.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

Reading Adam Smith after Darwin: On the Evolution of Propensities, Institutions, and Sentiments

Author

Listed:
  • Eric Schliesser

Abstract

This paper calls attention to Smith's "Considerations Concerning the First Formation of Languages" in order to facilitate understanding Adam Smith from an evolutionary perspective. In particular, such an evolutionary view can be discerned in how Smith saw that generic "natural sentiments" are applied and articulated, in light of local circumstances, into "moral sentiments." In doing so, the paper calls attention to the developmental interplay between the propensities of human nature in Smith's thought. First, it argues that at the start of Smith signals that human nature is not fixed. Second, it connects this evidence with an infamous passage on infanticide in in order to argue that Smith is committed to a thin group selection of institutions. Third, it argues that in "Considerations Concerning the First Formation of Languages" one can find building blocks for the claim that mind and language co-develop over time. It claims that in TMS there is a distinction between natural sentiments and moral sentiments. Natural sentiments are evolved (presumably through cultural selection) and moral sentiments are developed (through acculturation within society).

Suggested Citation

  • Eric Schliesser, 2010. "Reading Adam Smith after Darwin: On the Evolution of Propensities, Institutions, and Sentiments," Post-Print hal-00921187, HAL.
    • Handle: RePEc:hal:journl:hal-00921187
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jebo.2010.04.007
    Note: View the original document on HAL open archive server: https://hal.science/hal-00921187
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://hal.science/hal-00921187/document
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.jebo.2010.04.007?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Spencer J. Pack, 2010. "Aristotle, Adam Smith and Karl Marx," Books, Edward Elgar Publishing, number 13693.
    2. Elias Khalil, 2009. "Natural selection and rational decision: two concepts of optimization," Journal of Evolutionary Economics, Springer, vol. 19(3), pages 417-435, June.
    3. Lisa Hill, 2001. "The hidden theology of Adam Smith," The European Journal of the History of Economic Thought, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 8(1), pages 1-29.
    4. Levy, David M. & Peart, Sandra J., 2004. "Sympathy And Approbation In Hume And Smith: A Solution To The Other Rational Species Problem," Economics and Philosophy, Cambridge University Press, vol. 20(2), pages 331-349, October.
    5. Jonathan Wight, 2009. "Adam Smith on Instincts, Affection, and Informal Learning: Proximate Mechanisms in Multilevel Selection," Review of Social Economy, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 67(1), pages 95-113.
    6. Jimena Hurtado Prieto, 2004. "Bernard Mandeville's heir: Adam Smith or Jean Jacques Rousseau on the possibility of economic analysis," The European Journal of the History of Economic Thought, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 11(1), pages 1-31.
    7. Force,Pierre, 2003. "Self-Interest before Adam Smith," Cambridge Books, Cambridge University Press, number 9780521830607, January.
    8. Skinner, Andrew Stewart, 1996. "A System of Social Science: Papers Relating to Adam Smith," OUP Catalogue, Oxford University Press, edition 2, number 9780198233343.
    9. Leonidas Montes, 2004. "Adam Smith in Context," Palgrave Macmillan Books, Palgrave Macmillan, number 978-0-230-50440-0, October.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Schliesser, Eric, 2011. "Reading Adam Smith after Darwin: On the evolution of propensities, institutions, and sentiments," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 77(1), pages 14-22, January.
    2. Matthias P. Hühn & Claus Dierksmeier, 2016. "Will the Real A. Smith Please Stand Up!," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 136(1), pages 119-132, June.
    3. Santori, Paolo & Assistant, JHET, 2021. "Idleness and the Very Sparing Hand of God: The invisible tie between Hume’s "Dialogues Concerning Natural Religion" and Smith’s "Wealth of Nations"," OSF Preprints r2uje, Center for Open Science.
    4. Ötsch, Walter, 2020. "Imagination und Bildlichkeit in der Geschichte der Wirtschaftstheorie: Von Adam Smith bis zur frühen Neoklassik," Working Paper Serie des Instituts für Ökonomie 63, Hochschule für Gesellschaftsgestaltung (HfGG), Institut für Ökonomie.
    5. Elias L. Khalil, 2010. "Adam Smith’S Concept Of Self‐Command As A Solution To Dynamic Inconsistency And The Commitment Problem," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 48(1), pages 177-191, January.
    6. Ahmad Jafari Samimi, 2011. "Ethonomics & the History of Economic Thought," Journal of Social and Development Sciences, AMH International, vol. 2(5), pages 223-232.
    7. Madarász, Aladár, 2014. "A láthatatlan kéz - szemelvények egy metafora történetéből [The invisible hand - extracts from the history of a metaphor]," Közgazdasági Szemle (Economic Review - monthly of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences), Közgazdasági Szemle Alapítvány (Economic Review Foundation), vol. 0(7), pages 801-844.
    8. Laurie Bréban, 2017. "An Investigation into the Smithian System of Sympathy: from Cognition to Emotion," Working Papers hal-01467340, HAL.
    9. Matson, Erik W., 2021. "The Edifying Discourses of Adam Smith: Focalism, Commerce, and Serving the Common Good," OSF Preprints uye54, Center for Open Science.
    10. Matthias P. Hühn, 2019. "Adam Smith’s Philosophy of Science: Economics as Moral Imagination," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 155(1), pages 1-15, March.
    11. Ivan Sternick, 2022. "To be and to appear to be: Adam Smith’s response to Mandeville and Rousseau on the problem of the moral status of self-love," Textos para Discussão Cedeplar-UFMG 643, Cedeplar, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais.
    12. Laurie Bréban, 2014. "Smith on happiness: towards a gravitational theory," The European Journal of the History of Economic Thought, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 21(3), pages 359-391, June.
    13. Jonathan B. Wight, 2011. "Ethics and Critical Thinking," Chapters, in: Gail M. Hoyt & KimMarie McGoldrick (ed.), International Handbook on Teaching and Learning Economics, chapter 18, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    14. Jimena Hurtado, 2005. "The Utilitarian Foundations Of The Economic Approach To Human Behavior," Documentos CEDE 3633, Universidad de los Andes, Facultad de Economía, CEDE.
    15. Avner Offer, 2012. "A Warrant for Pain: Caveat Emptor vs. the Duty of Care in American Medicine, c. 1970-2010," Oxford University Economic and Social History Series _102, Economics Group, Nuffield College, University of Oxford.
    16. Sheila Dow, 2010. "The Psychology of Financial Markets: Keynes, Minsky and Emotional Finance," Chapters, in: Dimitri B. Papadimitriou & L. Randall Wray (ed.), The Elgar Companion to Hyman Minsky, chapter 13, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    17. Carlos Rodríguez Braun, 2021. "Adam Smith’s liberalism," The Review of Austrian Economics, Springer;Society for the Development of Austrian Economics, vol. 34(4), pages 465-478, December.
    18. Laurie Bréban, 2018. "An Investigation into the Smithian System of Sympathy: from Cognition to Emotion," Post-Print hal-03904227, HAL.
    19. Brosnan, Sarah F., 2011. "An evolutionary perspective on morality," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 77(1), pages 23-30, January.
    20. Andreas Ortmann & Benoît Walraevens, 2012. "Adam Smith, Philosopher and Man of the World," Post-Print halshs-00756341, HAL.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    B12; B31; B52; Adam Smith; Darwin; institutional evolution; economic psychology;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • B12 - Schools of Economic Thought and Methodology - - History of Economic Thought through 1925 - - - Classical (includes Adam Smith)
    • B31 - Schools of Economic Thought and Methodology - - History of Economic Thought: Individuals - - - Individuals
    • B52 - Schools of Economic Thought and Methodology - - Current Heterodox Approaches - - - Historical; Institutional; Evolutionary; Modern Monetary Theory;

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:hal:journl:hal-00921187. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: CCSD (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/ .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.