Who's afraid of Adam Smith? : how the market got its soul / Peter J. Dougherty.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Dougherty, Peter J.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Smith, Adam, 1723-1790.

Smith, Adam.

Capitalism--Moral and ethical aspects.

Capitalism.

Economics--Moral and ethical aspects.

Economics.

Globalization--Moral and ethical aspects.

Globalization.

Business ethics.

Local Subjects:

Smith, Adam, 1723-1790.

Physical Description:

xv, 223 pages ; 24 cm

Place of Publication:

New York : J. Wiley, [2002]

Summary:

Economic thinkers and policymakers have long regarded Adam Smith's great work, The Wealth of Nations, as a guide to the mysteries of the market. Now, in this spirited and timely book, Peter Dougherty shows how economists are drawing on the Scotsman's civic writings, most notably A Theory of Moral Sentiments, to illuminate how the market creates not only fiscal capital but "social capital." Although the social dimension of economic thinking begun by Smith some two centuries ago has waxed and waned through the years, Dougherty demonstrates how Smith's ideas are currently experiencing a renaissance in a host of cutting-edge policy directions. The book emphasizes this newly revived aspect of Smith's "Enlightenment" thought to underscore the oft-challenged contention that the market is not simply a shortcut to an economic end; quite the opposite: a healthy capitalism is itself a means -- arguably the most effective and enduring means -- toward a more civil, urbane, neighborly society.

Dougherty explores several impressive initiatives to demonstrate what today's theoretical and practicing economists are accomplishing in the spirit of Adam Smith's moral sentiments: the institutional reform of transitional and developing economies; the financing of new technological, medical, and educational initiatives; the expansion of home ownership and savings in impoverished communities; and the economic revival of cities. Incentives are integrated into these undertakings to make them not only beneficial for the people they are fashioned to help but attractive to investors, businesses, and the broader economic interests of society.

In the course of his argument, Dougherty follows Adam Smith's ideas through several generations of economic thought, from nineteenth-century economic philosophers such as Alfred Marshall, who maintained a focus on moral sentiments while extending the field's technical reach, to twentieth-century giants such as John Maynard Keynes, Paul Samuelson, and Milton Friedman, whose analytical economics have served to defend and expand market democracy.

A longtime economics publisher, Dougherty also debunks the popular myth of economists as gray-garbed number crunchers practicing a merely "dismal science." On the contrary, he emphasizes their deeper identity as intellectual architects in the ongoing civilizing enterprise of Adam Smith and his fellow worldly philosophers. Recounting with humor and verve his own improbable twenty-year editorial odyssey among the "academic scribblers" of economics, Dougherty makes a vigorous case that economists have a far greater impact on the culture than is usually recognized, and that this impact is likely to have welcome consequences in the revival of civil society. Capitalism pervades all aspects of our daily life. Peter Dougherty now offers a fascinating peek at its hidden soul.

Contents:

1. Letter Man 1

2. The Instructions 21

3. The Warning 30

4. Little Platoons 36

5. Enlightenment Wonk 47

6. Soul Survivors 65

7. Dragon Slayers 85

8. Comeback Kid 109

9. Kitchen Chemists 123

10. Egg Men 148

11. Urban Outfitters 167

Epilogue: Go with the Flow 185.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

0471184772

OCLC:

49894641