ADAM SMITH 30 th Most Influential Figures in History

A Little Background Information About the Life of Adam Smith Adam Smith Name June 5, 1723 Date of Baptism [Doesn’t Have Exact Birth date] Kirkcaldy, Fife, Scotland Place of Birth July 17, 1790 (Edinburgh, Scotland) Date and Place of Death Picture

Short Introduction about the works of Adam Smith

Shortly before his death Smith had nearly all his manuscripts destroyed. In his last years he seemed to have been planning two major treatises, one on the theory and history of law and one on the sciences and arts. The posthumously published Essays on Philosophical Subjects (1795) probably contain parts of what would have been the latter treatise.

The Wealth of the Nations

was influential since it did so much to create the field of economics and develop it into an autonomous systematic discipline. In the Western world, it is arguably the most influential book on the subject ever published. When the book, which has become a classic manifesto against mercantilism (the theory that large reserves of bullion [Gold and Silver reserves] are essential for economic success), appeared in 1776, there was a strong sentiment for free trade in both Britain and America. This new feeling had been born out of the economic hardships and poverty caused by the American War of Independence. However, at the time of publication, not everybody was immediately convinced of the advantages of free trade: the British public and Parliament still clung to mercantilism for many years to come. The Wealth of the Nations

The Wealth of Nations also rejects the Physiocratic school's emphasis on the importance of land ; instead, Smith believed labor was paramount, and that a division of labour would affect a great increase in production

One of the main points of The Wealth of Nations is that the free market, while appearing chaotic and unrestrained, is actually guided to produce the right amount and variety of goods by a so-called "invisible hand" (originally written in Moral Sentiments). The Wealth of the Nations

was so successful, in fact, that it led to the abandonment of earlier economic schools, and later economists, such as Thomas Malthus and David Ricardo, focused on refining Smith's theory into what is now known as classical economics (Modern economics evolved from this). Malthus expanded Smith's ruminations on overpopulation, while Ricardo believed in the "iron law of wages" — that overpopulation would prevent wages from topping the subsistence level. Smith postulated an increase of wages with an increase in production, a view considered more accurate today.

Influence of the “Wealth of the Nation”

The Wealth of Nations, one of the earliest attempts to study the rise of industry and commercial development in Europe, was a precursor to the modern academic discipline of economics. It provided one of the best-known intellectual rationales for free trade and capitalism, greatly influencing the writings of Marx and later economists. Influence of the “Wealth of the Nation”

Major Works The Theory of Moral Sentiments (1759) The Wealth of Nations (1776) Essays on Philosophical Subjects (published posthumously 1795)

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Kredits Group 1-Adam Smith Group

Celina Faye Manalastas Researcher

Mariz Rae Amarillo Reporter

Michael Rivera Animations

And the Rest

Dedicated to our Angelic Economics Teacher Mr. Alimurong Ms. Sunglao