Adam Smith

Adam Smith

Philosopher, Economist

Adam Smith was an 18th-century economist known for his influential work, 'The Wealth of Nations,' which laid the groundwork for modern economic theory.

Men People Government Country Economics Invisible Hand
Born
June 16, 1723
Died
July 17, 1790
Quotes
204
Rank
#3653

Quote collection

Adam Smith quotes (page 5 of 11)

204 quotes — follow a thought to its full quote page.

Adam Smith Philosopher, Economist
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"The discipline of colleges and universities is in general contrived, not for the benefit of the students, but for the interest, or more properly speaking, for the ease of the masters. Its object is, in all cases, to maintain the authority of the master, and whether he neglects or performs his duty, to oblige the students in all cases to behave toward him as if he performed it with the greatest diligence and ability."

College Discipline Benefits
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Adam Smith Philosopher, Economist
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"The rate of profit... is naturally low in rich and high in poor countries, and it is always highest in the countries which are going fastest to ruin."

Country Ruins Rich
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Adam Smith Philosopher, Economist
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"Fear is in almost all cases a wretched instrument of government, and ought in particular never to be employed against any order of men who have the smallest pretensions to independency."

Men Order Cases
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Adam Smith Philosopher, Economist
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"A power to dispose of estates for ever is manifestly absurd. The earth and the fulness of it belongs to every generation, and the preceding one can have no right to bind it up from posterity. Such extension of property is quite unnatural."

Earth Generations Absurd
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Adam Smith Philosopher, Economist
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"Are you in earnest resolved never to barter your liberty for the lordly servitude of a court, but to live free, fearless, and independent? There seems to be one way to continue in that virtuous resolution; and perhaps but one. Never enter the place from whence so few have been able to return; never come within the circle of ambition; nor ever bring yourself into comparison with those masters of the earth who have already engrossed the attention of half mankind before you."

Ambition Independent Circles
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Adam Smith Philosopher, Economist
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"People of the same trade seldom meet together, even for merriment and diversion, but the conversation ends in a conspiracy against the public, or in some contrivance to raise prices. It is impossible indeed to prevent such meetings, by any law which either could be executed, or would be consistent with liberty or justice. But though the law cannot hinder people of the same trade from sometimes assembling together, it ought to do nothing to facilitate such assemblies; much less to render them necessary."

Law Justice People
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Adam Smith Philosopher, Economist
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"Great ambition, the desire of real superiority, of leading and directing, seems to be altogether peculiar to man, and speech is the great instrument of ambition."

Real Ambition Men
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Adam Smith Philosopher, Economist
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"The annual labour of every nation is the fund which originally supplies it with all the necessaries and conveniencies of life which it annually consumes, and which consist always either in the immediate produce of that labour, or in what is purchased with that produce from other nations."

Origin Of Life Produce Wealth Of Nations
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Adam Smith Philosopher, Economist
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"Now many such things may be done without intitling the people to rise in arms. A gross, flagrant, and palpable abuse no doubt will do it, as if they should be required to pay a tax equal to half or third of their substance."

Philosophy People Political
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Adam Smith Philosopher, Economist
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"It is unjust that the whole of society should contribute towards an expence of which the benefit is confined to a part of the society."

Benefits Unjust Should
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Adam Smith Philosopher, Economist
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"The statesman who should attempt to direct private people in what manner they ought to employ their capitals would not only load himself with most unnecessary attention but assume an authority which could safely be trusted to no council and senate whatever, and which would nowhere be so dangerous as in the hands of man who have folly and presumption enough to fancy himself fit to exercise it."

Exercise Men Hands
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Adam Smith Philosopher, Economist
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"No society can surely be flourishing and happy, of which the far greater part of the members are poor and miserable. It is but equity, besides, that they who feed, clothe and lodge the whole body of the people, should have such a share of the produce of their own labour as to be themselves tolerably well fed, clothed and lodged."

Should Have People Body
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Adam Smith Philosopher, Economist
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"We rarely hear, it has been said, of the combinations [that is, unions or colluding organizations] of masters, though frequently of those of workmen. But whoever imagines, upon this account, that masters rarely combine, is as ignorant of the world as of the subject. Masters are always and everywhere in a sort of tacit, but constant and uniform combination, not to raise the wages of labor above their actual price."

Organization Ignorant World
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Adam Smith Philosopher, Economist
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"Resentment seems to have been given us by nature for a defense, and for a defense only! It is the safeguard of justice and the security of innocence."

Nature Hate Justice
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Adam Smith Philosopher, Economist
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"I am a beau in nothing but my books."

Book
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Adam Smith Philosopher, Economist
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"That wealth and greatness are often regarded with the respect and admiration which are due only to wisdom and virtue; and that the contempt, of which vice and folly are the only proper objects, is most often unjustly bestowed upon poverty and weakness, has been the complaint of moralists in all ages."

Respect Greatness Age
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Adam Smith Philosopher, Economist
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"By nature a philosopher is not in genius and disposition half so different from a street porter, as a mastiff is from a greyhound"

Different Genius Half
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Adam Smith Philosopher, Economist
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"Poor David Hume is dying fast, but with more real cheerfulness and good humor and with more real resignation to the necessary course of things, than any whining Christian ever dyed with pretended resignation to the will of God."

Christian Fake People Real
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Adam Smith Philosopher, Economist
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"Adventure upon all the tickets in the lottery, and you lose for certain; and the greater the number of your tickets the nearer your approach to this certainty."

Travel Business Adventure
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