Adam Smith, radical and egalitarian : an interpretation for the twenty-first century / Iain McLean.

Originally published: Edinburgh : Edinburgy University Press, 2006.

Includes bibliographical references (pages 158-165) and index.

Preface : a Scotsman looks at the world -- 1. The life of an absent-minded professor -- 2. A weak state and a weak church -- 3. A non-religious grounding of morals : Smith and the Scottish enlightenment -- 4. Merriment and diversion : Smith on public finance and public choice -- 5. The invisible hand and the helping hand -- 6. The French and American Smiths -- 7. Adam Smith today.

"Adam Smith (1723-90), the author of The Wealth of Nations, was not the promoter of ruthless laissez-faire capitalism that is still frequently depicted. His 'right-wing' reputation was sealed after his death, when it was unsafe to claim that an author may have influenced the French revolutionaries. But as the author, also, of The Theory of Moral Sentiments - which he probably regarded as his more important book - Smith sought a non-religious grounding for morals. This he found in the principle of sympathy, which should lead an impartial spectator to understand others' problems." "This book locates Smith in the Scottish Enlightenment; shows how the two books are perfectly consistent with one another; traces Smith's influence in France and the United States; and draws out the lessons that Adam Smith can teach policymakers in the 21st century."--Publisher.

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