The Role Of Sympathy In Adam Smith's Moral Philosophy

Adam Smith, despite identification by many as the creator of modern economic theories that formed the basis of capitalism in its present system, postulated much further into the concepts of the evolution of civilization and the changing societal morals within. His focus on morality and its intersection with his unique definition of sympathy shaped a philosophy that influenced fellow Enlightenment thinkers and later moral philosophers. Smith’s unique theories on this subject, in particular the idea of the impartial spectator as key to an improved society, fuel debate upon the precise nature of this spectator’s role in his moral philosophy and its application to the present-day society. The moral philosophy of Adam Smith involves several factors …show more content…
Sympathy is thus in the theory more than a simple emotion, now instead having key importance in the moral definition of an individual and the greater society at large. This “passion[ate]” sympathy emitted in “the breast of every attentive spectator” upon witnessing an event creates an opportunity for moral judgment. Through this scenario, sympathy as part of moral understanding therefore does not emerge through witnessing specific people and their actions, yet instead only through certain “situation[s] which [particularly] excites it” does sympathy arise. In conclusion to the concept of sympathy within moral philosophy, Smith believes that “to sympathize with another 's feelings is to approve of those feelings,” in whatever context they are created, and that to sympathize as what is called an “impartial spectator” would hence give moral approval to the other’s feelings. The addition of an impartial spectator aspect to this theory, however, clearly fails to consider complications such as misinterpretations of events by the observer, creating sympathy for an inaccurate assessment of