Abstract
dc:description.abstractThis is the first book-length study of Adam Smith’s thoughts on inequality. The scholarly literature on Smith is vast, but hitherto comparatively little has been written on this feature of his thought. The prevailing interpretation of Smith as a thinker primarily interested in the plight of the poor, one who viewed free markets as best-placed to lift them out of absolute poverty, may have contributed to this relative silence. Within the scholarship that has considered the subject, several aspects of his thought on inequality have been especially neglected, including the origins of inequality, his history of inequality, inequality between states, the impact of rank on moral judgement, and education as a remedy to inequality. By examining these, this thesis contributes not only to the scholarship on Smith’s thought on inequality, but also to the flourishing interest in his political thought. The thesis makes three main arguments. First, that Smith was more attentive to the causes, development and effects of inequality than is recognised. Second, that Smith should be understood as a theorist of political stability and social rank. Third, that Smith recognised a tension between political stability and inequality. Echoing David Hume, Smith maintained that inequality was an inevitable byproduct of social development and that in order to function political society required a degree of subordination and therefore inequality. However, while significant levels of inequality might support internal political stability, they could also undermine its central aims, namely economic prosperity and a nation’s defence. Inequality and its potential consequences had to be managed politically, or they would threaten the state’s existence. Smith turned to the study of history to identify the consequences of inequality through the ages, as well as potential remedies to them. Contrary to the prevailing interpretation within the scholarship, this thesis demonstrates that Smith was deeply concerned with inequality and that he returned to the topic constantly throughout his works.
Degree
thesis:*- Name dc:type.qualificationname
- Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
- Level dc:type.qualificationlevel
- Doctoral
- Grantor dc:publisher.institution
- University of Cambridge
- Year dc:date.issued
- 2025
Author and committee
dc:creator, dc:contributor.*- Author dc:creator
-
- Rauwald, Justus
- Advisor dc:contributor.advisor
-
- Tomaselli, Sylvana
Subjects
dc:subject × 3Rights
dc:rightsIdentifiers
dc:identifier.*- DOI dc:identifier.doi
- https://doi.org/10.17863/CAM.122655
- OAI identifier oai:identifier
- oai:www.repository.cam.ac.uk:1810/391562