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Adam Smith: An Enlightened Life (The Lewis Walpole Series in Eighteenth-Century Culture and History) Hardcover – October 5, 2010

4.2 out of 5 stars 53

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The great eighteenth-century British economist Adam Smith (1723–90) is celebrated as the founder of modern economics. Yet Smith saw himself primarily as a philosopher rather than an economist and would never have predicted that the ideas for which he is now best known were his most important. This biography shows the extent to which Smith's great works, The Wealth of Nations and The Theory of Moral Sentiments, were part of one of the most ambitious projects of the Euruopean Enlightenment, a grand “Science of Man" that would encompass law, history, and aesthetics as well as economics and ethics, and which was only half complete on Smith’s death in 1790.

Nick Phillipson reconstructs Smith’s intellectual ancestry and shows what Smith took from, and what he gave to, in the rapidly changing intellectual and commercial cultures of Glasgow and Edinburgh as they entered the great years of the Scottish Enlightenment. Above all he explains how far Smith’s ideas developed in dialogue with those of his closest friend, the other titan of the age, David Hume.


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Book recommendations, author interviews, editors' picks, and more. Read it now.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"A fascinating book. . . . Adam Smith finally has the biography that he deserves, and it could not be more timely."—Jeffrey Collins, Wall Street Journal (Jeffrey Collins Wall Street Journal)

"An unabashedly intellectual biography . . . [written] in graceful prose. . . . For all that subsequent generations, no less our own, have taken from Smith's economic contributions, it is indeed enlightening to understand the broader sweep of his vision."--Nancy F. Koehn,
New York Times (Nancy F. Koehn New York Times)

“Lively [and] well-observed. . . . It would take a ‘skilful pencil’ to bring Smith to life, warned one of his friends. In bringing Smith’s ideas to life, Phillipson shows that his pencilwork is skilful indeed. ”—
The Economist (The Economist)

"Remarkable, often brilliant. . . stuffed with acute philosophical observations. But no less fascinating is the portrait of the milieu in which Smith lived. . . . Phillipson's exposition of [Smith's] 'enlightened life' can scarcely be bettered."—
The Times (London) (The Times (London))

"[Nicholas Phillipson] tries, very successfully, to pull together the two Smiths, letting us see how the man of feeling became the little god of finance. . . making it plain that Smith was more moral-man than market-man."—Adam Gopnik,
The New Yorker (Adam Gopnik The New Yorker 2010-10-18)

"One good reason to read Nicholas Phillipson's excellent intellectual biography is to gain a more nuanced understanding of Smith and, in particular, of his vision of an all-embracing science of man. . . . When Phillipson discusses
The Wealth of Nations, it's hard not to discern parallels between Smith's time and our own."—Michael Dirda, Washington Post (Michael Dirda Washington Post)

"This year, my favorite business book was Nicholas Phillipson's biography of Adam Smith. It showed that Smith is still the greatest economist of all time, wise about human nature, and that he understands the power of capitalism."—Tyler Cowen, NPR's "Marketplace" (Tyler Cowen
NPR's Marketplace)

Named a Favorite Business Book of 2010 by James Pressley,
Bloomberg BusinessWeek (James Pressley Bloomberg Business Week)

Named a Best Book of 2010 by the
Atlantic (Atlantic Monthly)

Named a
Critics' Favorite Book of 2010—The New Yorker (New Yorker)

Named a Best Business Book of 2010 by Tyler Cowen, NPR's "Marketplace" (Tyler Cowen
NPR's Marketplace)

"In a feast of both writing and erudition, Nicholas Phillipson has recreated the intellectual and mercantile world of Adam Smith, and shows how it shaped Smith's two masterpieces, the
Theory of Moral Sentiments and the Wealth of Nations. He sets Smith's economics firmly in the philosophy of the Scottish Enlightenment – and especially of his great friend David Hume – and argues compellingly that for Smith material improvement was not an end in itself, but a necessary condition for human ennoblement, which was the grand aim of his life's work. A wonderful, thought-provoking book."—Robert Skidelsky, biographer of John Maynard Keynes (Robert Skidelsky)

"Nicholas Phillipson's lifelong study of Adam Smith has been well worth waiting for. Phillipson treats Smith's
The Wealth of Nations as the sequel to his Theory of Moral Sentiments. Political economy and the history of society were handmaids to the moral philosophy which Enlightenment thinkers intended as the replacement of religion. This story has never been better told than in this deeply sympathetic biography of an intellectually ambitious but personally modest man, and it is a superb portrait of the Scotland, Britain and Europe he lived in."— J.G.A. Pocock, Johns Hopkins University (J.G.A. Pocock)

"This stylish biography brings to life Adam Smith's breathtaking ambition to create a Science of Man. Phillipson's elegant prose and erudition make clear the necessary relationship between Smith's moral philosophy and his political economy. The reader is left with a deeper appreciation for Smith's project and for the eighteenth-century Scottish world in which he lived. This book is both a delight to read and agenda-setting. A real achievement!"—Steve Pincus, Yale University (Steve Pincus)

"This is easily the best book on Smith I’ve read: a wonderfully accessible, thoroughly researched, full-bodied drama examining the philosopher and economist. Phillipson’s biography presents Smith as a living personality, not just an imposing intellect, tracking his social, economic, and political moves from his birthplace Kirkcaldy, to Glasgow and Oxford, through his various lectures and professorships, travels around Europe, preparation of
The Wealth of Nations, and finally to his work for the government. In doing so, it makes a strong case for the importance and complexity – perhaps primacy – of the Scottish Enlightenment and the men who contributed to it. In clean and clear prose, Phillipson explains what Smith was writing and why he was writing it, whether moral philosophy, jurisprudence, rhetoric or political economy. This beguiling blend of Smith’s intellection and experience should appeal to anyone interested in the making of the modern world."—David Hancock, author of Oceans of Wine: Madeira and the Emergence of American Trade and Taste
(David Hancock)

"[A] great achievement. . . . Few books have shed better light on what Smith 'meant' and why he wrote as he did."—
Scotland on Sunday (Scotland on Sunday)

"The myth of Adam Smith is that he was the hard-nosed high priest of self-interested capitalism. [Phillipson] shows that his intellectual goals were far greater and nobler. . . . Phillipson has portrayed an Adam Smith for our times."—
New Statesman (New Statesman)

"The Smith who emerges from this thoughtful study. . . had an intellect of extraordinary brilliance, and it is the life of that intellect that is finely portrayed in this book."—
Sunday Telegraph (London) (Sunday Telegraph (London))

"Phillipson's path-breaking biography shines new light on the complex development of this much-misunderstood thinker."—
The Independent (London) (The Independent (London))

"Phillipson has been studying [the Scottish Enlightenment], this explosion of genius, all his life, and is a trustworthy guide to the life of Adam Smith."—
Financial Times (Financial Times)

"Having failed so royally to predict or ameliorate our present distress, some economists may come to examine their assumptions and be drawn to this fine book and its mighty subject."—
The Guardian (London) (The Guardian (London))

"Drawing on Smith's published works and student notes from his lectures, Phillipson shows how Smith's thinking on social theory and ethics influenced his system of economics. . . . what Phillipson calls a 'vast intellectual project.' "—
Bloomberg Business Week (Bloomberg Business Week)

"An unabashedly intellectual biography. . . . It is indeed enlightening to understand the broader sweep of [Adam Smith's] vision."—Nancy F. Koehn,
New York Times (Nancy F. Koehn New York Times)

"An absorbing and elegant account of Smith's mind and of the Scottish context, social and intellectual, that produced it."—Blair Worden,
The Spectator (London) (Blair Worden The Spectator)

"For scholars. . .
Adam Smith: An Enlightened Life should prove a very valuable resource. For more general audiences there is much to appreciate here--fine prose, erudite consideration of Enlightenment thought, and a consistently engaging narrative."—PopMatters
(
PopMatters)

"Nicholas Phillipson’s new biography,
Adam Smith: An Enlightened Life, is a pleasure to read, and it provides us with a clear and thorough account of Smith’s life."—Samuel Fleischacker, Journal of British Studies (Samuel Fleischacker Journal of British Studies)

 Winner of the 2011-2013 Annibel Jenkins Prize, given by the American Society for the 18th Century Studies. (2011-2013 Annibel Jenkins Prize
American Society for the 18th Century Studies 2013-01-25)

About the Author

Nicholas Phillipson is one of the leading scholars of the Scottish Enlightenment. An Honorary Research Fellow in History at the University of Edinburgh, he has held visiting appointments at Princeton, Yale, the Folger Library, and the Ludwigs-Maximilians-Universität.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Yale University Press; First Edition (October 5, 2010)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 368 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0300169272
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0300169270
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.56 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6.13 x 1.31 x 9.25 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.2 out of 5 stars 53

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Customer reviews

4.2 out of 5 stars
4.2 out of 5
53 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Reviewed in the United States on November 9, 2010
I have read five book-length biographies of Adam Smith and concluded that the one by Ian Simpson Ross was definitive. I purchased the latest by Nicholas Phillipson because of his reputation rather than an expectation to learn much that is new. Reading it has proven that labeling a work as definitive does not mean it is the final word on the subject. Quite the contrary, Phillipson's work is aptly titled: Adam Smith: An Enlightened Life, as it traces the development of Smith's thought in the milieu of the Scottish Enlightenment and British geopolitics during the second half of the eighteenth century. What was especially enjoyable was to learn more about the great debt Smith owed Hume as an intellect in shaping his works and as a friend. Phillipson expresses puzzlement about why Smith may not have held up his end of the friendship. After reading E. C. Mossner's The Life of David Hume and the Smith biographies, it seems clear Smith was too prudent to do so. If given a change, this reviewer would rather have kept the company of Hume than Smith.
Yale has done justice to this wonderful work. The production is a delight to see and to hold. It provides the best answer to e-books because we buyers will surely enjoying pulling it from our shelves, looking at the illustrations, and reading it again.
21 people found this helpful
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Reviewed in the United States on November 18, 2012
Adam Smith is one of the most important figures in modern economic theory. In a very real sense, he provided the basis for the Industrial Revolution through his emphasis on the division of labor as the root of all economic progress. He is, however, more than an economist; his theories on the origin and nature of morality were instrumental in forming his economics, but they reached much farther than economics itself.

While there is little in the way of private writing on which to base anything, because Smith instructed that all his private papers be destroyed at his death, Nicholas Phillipson has written an able biography of the development of Smith's ideas based on his public writings, his unpublished writings, and the notes of several of his students taken down in lecture. The story he tells is fascinating, describing the economic and political circumstances around Smith's life.

The author begins, as with all biographies, in Smith's childhood home and city, Kirkcaldy. Smith lived in the time when Scotland was moving from being a poor country reliant on spinning and meager farms for its economic basis through the industrial revolution, and so his education and thinking were grounded in the experience of those times. He began his life in trying to understand how this massive change came in his world. From here, Smith moved into teaching at a growing college that was closely tied to the town and the town's business interests, so he once again remained on the economic side of academic life -- or rather saw life through an economic and mercantile lens.

The economic history is well known, and well plied in various textbooks. What the author next brings to light is the most interesting: Smith's ties to the Enlightenment. It is the combination of Enlightenment thinking and commercial growth that led to Smith's ultimate quest, to explain the rise of the "moral sentiment," or rather the rise of morality in human society. While many today consider the Enlightenment to be a wide growth of knowledge as science threw off the shackles of religion, the reality is far different.

The Enlightenment, in the end, was removing the Judeo-Christian foundation from science to replace it with another set of religious beliefs, a Deistic/Darwinistic world view that places man at the center of all things. When Smith applied Enlightenment thinking to the economic growth he had seen, he came to the conclusion that morality comes about in human communities because of the need for the rich to protect their goods from the poor -- hence, all morality is essentially based on developing economies.

"Till there be property there can be no government, the very end of which is to secure wealth, and to defend the rich from the poor." -quoted on page 174

Smith was essentially attempting to answer the question, "if there is no God, then why are there morals," without asserting there is no God. Based on this biography, he didn't want to argue against God directly, but rather to simply leave God out in the cold, a small, useless figure that doesn't have any real impact in our actual lives. Man has built it all, from civilization to morals; God need not apply. While the division of labor, Smith's fundamental addition to the body of economic theory, is useful and solid, his theory of morality attempted to find solidity in commerce where it could not be found in the various Enlightenment branches of Darwinistic thought.

This is a very solid and readable biography of a man who has impacted our modern worldview in ways very few people actually understand, and well worth reading.
4 people found this helpful
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Reviewed in the United States on September 19, 2010
A solidly written biography of one known by most of us only as the Scottish author of an unread great book. Professor Phillipson's fine effort should lead many to go back and read "The Wealth of Nations."

Adam Smith's thoughts still have direct relevance to today's bucketful of economic problems--and resulting strident political debates--over government's proper role in terms of expenditures, debt, taxation, and business regulations.

While this book concentrates on the scholarship of Adam Smith, the author also intelligently traces the era within which Smith lived and his private life that included such striking people as David Hume, James Boswell, and Voltaire.

In this current age of instant and empty celebrities, Smith still stands, after about 250 years, as a man worth knowing.
36 people found this helpful
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Reviewed in the United States on May 17, 2011
Rich and plentiful research and scholarship make this book a treasure for academics. For the semi-intellectual, there is just too much of it. What I wanted was an overview of why Adam Smith is important, not a history of the Scottish Enlightenment. Adam Smith is almost buried in all the facts at the author's fingertips. A more focused treatment would be a vast improvement for most people, but then, I don't think that was the author's goal.
3 people found this helpful
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Reviewed in the United States on November 30, 2010
I thought this book would have a million reviews, but since not let me give it another fiver. I was just astonished at how Smith's grand worldview is in fact a projection of his own provincial, very historically constrained culture. The author, while emphasising this fact, is oddly (seemingly, reading between the lines)still inclined to view it as somehow objectively correct as a model of human behavior. Phillipson's mastery of the Scottish Enlightenment is absolutely complete, what a great tour. This is a must read for anyone interested in the humanities.

The owl of wisdom flies at night. After it's over, then we understand. About capitalism, that's the feeling I get from this book.
5 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

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Lawrence Holden
5.0 out of 5 stars Highly significant biography
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on June 19, 2021
Adam Smith's clarity of thought changed thinking about economic and social thinking. This account of his life gives important insight to his fascinating life. Almost more importantly it takes us to the centre of the surge of creative thought that has become known as the Scottish Enlightenment. This is widely unknown or misunderstood but is now as relevant and inspiring as ever. Definitely a book for our misguided times.
Rolf Hasse
5.0 out of 5 stars rundet das Wissen über Adam Smith gut ab
Reviewed in Germany on September 30, 2019
Inhalt sehr gut. Einsatz in der Lehre.
kumar rana
4.0 out of 5 stars Very vsluable
Reviewed in India on December 10, 2018
A great book
Vlad Thelad
5.0 out of 5 stars An intellectual biography
Reviewed in Canada on May 1, 2011
If you are looking for an exposé of the secret life of Adam Smith (or whatever it is some expect to find in contemporary biographies) this is not a book for you. This is an appropriately described intellectual biography, one that contextualizes in time, place, facts and ideas, the works of Adam Smith. It is an invitation to go beyond the clichés attached to his thought, and the dogmas erroneously attributed to his political economy. By presenting the broader scope and ambition of Smith's ideas, and their place in the eighteen century Scottish Enlightenment, this biography reveals a far greater philosopher than usually credited. This book is not a gripping page-turner, but one definitely worth reading.
2 people found this helpful
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Dr. G. Kennedy
5.0 out of 5 stars A Scholar scores
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 18, 2013
Magnificent. Best account of Adam Smith's intellectual ideas, strong on moral philosophy if a little weak on his political economy (anyway, that's well covered in other books).