Understand the mind that created The Wealth of Nations - newly indexed and illustrated!
Long thought lost, Adam Smith's Lectures on Jurisprudence distill an astonishing quantity of knowledge and thought into a single volume examining topics as diverse as justice, law, government, economics and military matters.
Those interested in exploring the origins of the concepts found in that cornerstone of economics The Wealth of Nations, as well as those who wish to discover Smith's ideas in an easy-to-read work of fewer than two hundred pages, will find a great deal to enjoy here.
This University of Life edition is newly indexed, and illustrated with scenes of the Scottish Englightenment.
This is not a facsimille edition or a low-quality reprint; it has been newly typeset for a modern audience, at a large text size, for your reading pleasure.
About the Series:
The University of Life Library was founded to publish a uniform collection of beautiful, heirloom-quality volumes of the great works of politics, philosophy, economics, science and fiction, the reading of which could provide all people not only with great enjoyment but, at minimal expense, with the benefits of a traditional, classical education.
The Library’s titles are chosen to illustrate, reinforce, and promote further inquiry into those concepts and values that originated in the civilizations of ancient Greece and Rome and, being expanded and improved-upon by the greatest minds of Europe and the Americas over many centuries, particularly during the Enlightenment, form the bedrock of Western civilization.
Being the embodiment of the virtues enabling the creation of the United States of America, that nation most influenced by the Enlightenment’s illumination, and founded upon its precepts, each title opens with an illustration of Columbia, based on John Gast’s iconic 1872 painting, American Progress.
Additionally, each title is illustrated with related scenes, and non-fiction titles are furnished with an extensive index of concepts, key phrases, people and places.
We hope our editions can provide entertainment, education and inspiration to the young and mature alike. We strive to provide a collection of well-loved, widely-varied works that will take pride of place on the bookshelves of families and businesses for generations to come.
“The true university of these days is a collection of books” - Thomas Carlyle
About the Author:
Adam Smith FRSA 16 June 1723 – 17 July 1790 was a Scottish economist, philosopher, and author. He was a moral philosopher, a pioneer of political economy, and was a key figure during the Scottish Enlightenment era. He is best known for two classic works: The Theory of Moral Sentiments (1759), and An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations (1776). The latter, usually abbreviated as The Wealth of Nations, is considered his magnum opus and the first modern work of economics.
Smith laid the foundations of classical free market economic theory. The Wealth of Nations was a precursor to the modern academic discipline of economics. In this and other works, he developed the concept of division of labour, and expounded upon how rational self-interest and competition can lead to economic prosperity. Smith was controversial in his own day and his general approach and writing style were often satirised by Tory writers in the moralising tradition of William Hogarth and Jonathan Swift. In 2005, The Wealth of Nations was named among the 100 Best Scottish Books of all time. The minor planet 12838 Adamsmith was named in his memory.