Final Grades for Fall 2010

Fall 2010 Final Grades

On Adam Smith, Natural Rights, and the Theory of Moral Sentiments

On Adam Smith, Natural Rights, and the Theory of Moral Sentiments

Eliyahu N Kassorla

Economic Principles of Adam Smith

W. Lesperance, Ph.D.        

Introduction

Liberal theory predicts that the outcomes of social development are increased rights of the individual, an advanced economy, and a system of justice that protects property and rights. John Locke explains how these rights are derived, while Adam Smith explains how these are inevitable consequence of human development. The works of John Locke and Adam Smith have created and shaped our modern definition of liberalism, and their works overlap in scope. The concept of natural rights, as explained by John Locke, was a new principle within the Scottish Enlightenment period. John Locke explains how individuals derive their basic rights, and these notions of liberalism would later influence Smith, who explains the relationship of society to the individual and the economy. Through the pairing of the Locke’s Two Treatises of Government and Smith’s Theory of Moral Sentiments, the reader is exposed to the idea that man creates his own rights, and the rights are a natural consequence of human development and economic advancement.