Economics 1776 Lecture Notes - Lecture 7: Stoicism, Age Of Enlightenment
18 Jun 2018
School
Department
Course
Professor
Office&hours&2-3&Thursday&in&the&Barker&Center&Café&-- send&email&beforehand
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Central&importance&of&the&human&imagination
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Desire&for&mutuality,&"fellow&feeling"
§
Man's&intrinsically&sociable&nature
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But&a&social&interpretation&("society&and&conversation")
§
A&stoic&conception&of&happiness
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Smith,&The$Theory$of$Moral$Sentiments$(1759)
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Only&used&twice&in&book
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The&Enlightenment&idea&of&the&"law&of&unintended&consequences"
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Also&a&further&aspect&of&the&Stoic&concept&of&the&harmonious&universe
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Even&in&TMS:&an&explicitly& economic&example&(distribution&of&food)
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Also&an&anticipation&of&the&WN account&of&the&rise&of&town&life&and&
nonagricultural&economic&activity&-- which&Smith&saw&as&essential&to&
human&progress
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The&"Invisible&Hand"&in&TMS
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Smiths&account&of&the&near&equality&of&distribution&of&food&production&--
despite&the&extreme&inequality&of&land&ownership
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Unintended&Consequences:&The&TMS$"Invisible&Hand"&Example
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The&landowner's&"stomach"&is&limited
§
Is&his&capacity&to&own&and&use&manufactured&goods&(for&example)&
likewise&limited?
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What&about&owners&of&non-agricultural&capital?
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Does&Smith's&agriculture-based&reasoning&here&carry&over&to&a&non-
agricultural&society?
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Potentially&troubling&questions&about&the&"Invisible&Hand"&example&in&TMS
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To&begin,&Smith&accepts&the&usual&desire&for&more&consumption&(WN,&but&
not&contradicted&in&TMS)
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Smith's&Subversive&thoughts&on&the&Standard&Theory&of&Consumption
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"This&disposition&to&admire,&and&almost&to&worship,&the&rich&and&powerful..&Is&…&the&
great&and&most&universal&cause&of&the&corruption&of&our&moral&sentiments"
"There&are&hypocrites&of&wealth&and&greatness,&as&well&as&of&religion&and&virtue"
"wealth&and&greatness&are&mere&trinkets&of&frivolous&utility"
9/18/17
Monday,&September& 18,&2017
10:07&AM
