48 pages • 1 hour read
Adam SmithThe Wealth of Nations. The Theory of Moral Sentiments
Nonfiction | Book | Adult | Published in 1776A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Essay Topics
Explain the concept of supply and demand as Smith presents it in The Wealth of Nations. How has the concept of supply and demand developed since Smith’s writing? Relate the concept to the modern global economy.
Reference an example of Smith’s division of labor that can be observed in daily life. In your example, what are the benefits of conducting the job in this manner? What are the drawbacks?
How has Smith’s concept of division of labor, and, with it, specialization, shaped our modern economy? Smith explains that increased specialization will lead to the innovation of specialized machinery to aid workers in completing tasks. Has this occurred, and, if so, has it made society better? Provide examples.
Explain Smith’s views on government regulation. Would Smith be in favor of the government providing subsidies for solar farms or oil drilling companies? Would Smith be in favor of non-economic environmental regulation, such as protecting lands from development for ecological, rather than economic, concerns?
The economist Milton Friedman states, “The key insight of Adam Smith’s Wealth of Nations is misleadingly simple: if an exchange between two parties is voluntary, it will not take place unless both believe they will benefit from it. Most economic fallacies derive from the neglect of this simple insight, from the tendency to assume that there is a fixed pie, that one party can gain only at the expense of another.” Evaluate Friedman’s quote, providing examples from The Wealth of Nations to support your argument.
Smith favors free trade. Using ideas from The Wealth of Nations, explain why tariffs hurt the economies of both nations trading. Provide examples of when tariffs can benefit a nation. When tariffs are beneficial, are they economically beneficial, or beneficial in some other way?
What are Smith’s thoughts on taxes? What are appropriate uses for revenue raised through taxation? What are inappropriate uses of such revenue? What does Smith believe is the best method of taxation?
Explain the distinction between Smith’s writing in Book 5 on funding elementary education versus higher education. Evaluate his arguments.
The legacy of Smith and The Wealth of Nations has become one of laissez-faire economics, free markets, and deregulation. To what extent does his writing reflect that legacy? To what extent is his writing in opposition to those ideas?
Smith writes extensively on labor in The Wealth of Nations. Modern labor movements focus on unions bargaining for increased worker rights, pay, and benefits, among other things. What would Smith think of labor unions, collective bargaining, and other aspects of modern labor movements? Reference Smith’s arguments in The Wealth of Nations in your response.
