Adam Smith was an advocate of the free market, however his first work, The
Theory of Moral Sentiments, was on ethics and was widely acclaimed at the time.
Commentators have tended to review this work as separate to his work on
political economy. However the global financial crisis has shown the relevance
of morality and the free market. Whilst The Wealth of Nations is concerned with
political economy, Smith's pointed attacks on exploitation and greed reflect the
ethics outlined in his first work.
Smith's critics ignore the constructive role he proposed for government, which
included ensuring the provision of education and protection of society by
regulating the banking system. He stressed however that government regulations
be kept to a minimum.
Since The Wealth of Nations, the per capita income in the UK has risen 16 times
and the most successful countries have been those pursuing free market policies.
Adam Smith's work is extremely relevant to understanding the global financial…
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