Adam Smith's Non-foundationalism
29 Pages Posted: 7 Mar 2016
Date Written: March 1, 2016
Abstract
This article is part of a symposium (in Society) on a target article by Amitai Etzioni. Using that article as a point of departure, I take the opportunity to elaborate a reading of Adam Smith’s moral philosophy that sees it as quite non-foundationalist. Whereas foundationalism’s metaphor is a block or pillar, as non-foundationalism’s metaphor I suggest a spiral. I claim that non-foundationalism and Smithian liberalism dovetail.
Keywords: Adam Smith, The Theory of Moral Sentiments, foundationalism, relativism
JEL Classification: A13, B12
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation
Klein, Daniel B., Adam Smith's Non-foundationalism (March 1, 2016). GMU Working Paper in Economics No. 16-08, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2740837 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2740837
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