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Speaking of Smith Archives

#ReadWithMe: Ritchie Robertson’s The Enlightenment Part 4: Sympathy and Sociability

August 26, 2022


How do public lectures, salons, and reading narrative fiction influence the Enlightenment?. Amy Wills continues to explore Ritchie Robertson's book in part 4 of her summer #ReadWithMe series. 

Dear Adam Smith: An Antidote To Torpor

August 25, 2022


Stuck in a rut? Adam Smith advises a restless IT worker to look beyond his screen. 

Smithian Sympathy and Horrible Surprises

August 18, 2022


Adam Smith well understood the power of surprise - a strong enough surprise could cause sudden death! Jon Murphy thinks about what that says about people who love a good horror. 

From Field to Town and Country

August 16, 2022



Smith’s stadial theory has raised many questions and met with many scholarly challenges. Veckov draws attention to what we can learn from it today. 

What Adam Smith Ate: Salt

August 14, 2022


Salt would have been in Adam Smith’s food, kitchen, and perhaps even on the table. But more than that, Smith understand that salt was a commodity that was used and traded and of great importance to world markets. 

Adam Smith on Jane Eyre’s Blanche Ingram

August 11, 2022


Has any woman ever given a fair assessment of a romantic rival? Daniels (and Smith) investigate just how horrible is Blanche Ingram in Charlotte Brontë's Jane Eyre using the help of the impartial spectator. 

Take A Trip, Come Away With Us—to Scotland!

August 9, 2022


Adam Smith's Scotland: A post to plan a trip, remember a trip, or just enjoy the idea of one.

Jane Eyre's Equality of Spirit

August 4, 2022


When Jane Eyre claims to be Mr. Rochester's equal, she has no social status, no financial security, and no political power. But she has certainty that her spirit, as it will stand before God, is equal to anyone else's spirit. 

The Foundation of Jane Eyre’s Moral Education

 July 28, 2022


How does a child begin a moral education? Daniels suggests Jane Eyre’s reading of history and the Bible give her a good start but much more is required. 

#ReadWithMe: The Enlightenment Part 3: Toleration, Reason, and Religion

 July 20, 2022


Perhaps Robertson’s most interesting claim thus far is that toleration came initially as a result of political action. It did not spring from “enlightened” thinking, but was based on the practical need to resolve conflicts between nascent political units. 

Glory Liu on the Smith Questionnaire

 July 19, 2022


Glory Liu talks about why the Wealth of Nations > Theory of Moral Sentiments, watching dancing is a idea; and where she thinks Adam Smith might take a summer vacation.