Smith College

“Science is the great antidote to the poison of enthusiasm and superstition.” Adam smith wrote this robust statement in his book The Wealth of Nations in 1776 (para. 203). Adam Smith was a brilliant Scottish social philosopher, who forever influenced economics with his book The Wealth of Nations. In this book Adam Smith wrote about many different aspects of an economy, consequentially, he wrote a metaphor that has shaped his legacy tremendously. The metaphor he wrote dealt with the “free market”…

corporate profits have nearly tripled, and wages have increased 1.7% (Brooks). Under President Bush’s Administration, (which actively opposed government involvement in economic affairs,) unemployment peaked at 8%, the GDP lost 5%, and wages for college graduates stagnated. (Matthews). In addition, the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan were underfunded due to Republican backed tax cuts, putting the nation in debt over 1.778 Trillion dollars. (Matthews.) Ultimately, no matter what the opposition…

The Invisible Hand metaphor is a term used by Adam Smith expressing the self-regulating ability of the free market. According to Smith, the Invisible Hand expressed the ability of a market economy to automatically maximize social welfare through the pursuit of self-interests. This argument however in contemporary time is becoming ever so questionable as capitalism is becoming increasingly more incompatible with democracy. Wolfgang Streeck states that, “Capitalism and democracy had long been…

It is distinctly in the shape of a hand (466). In her work “The Invisible Hand Made Visible,” Cindy Weinstein explains that this is important because it seems to reflect the “invisible hand” economic idea about which enlightenment economist Adam Smith writes (726-727). The “invisible hand” is representative of a group of enlightenment thinker’s who think less governmental control is best. They think that greed in this open economy is perfectly acceptable or even to be encouraged (727). Ergo,…

people do as they choose”. 8. Capital is unrelated to private property. 9. John Locke believed that people have a natural right to private property. 10. Smith gave careful arguments for the view that humans are acquisitive creatures. 11. Smith believed in the law of supply and demand. 12. There are no operational objections to capitalism. 1. The persons who provide the capital to a…

16. The Benefits of Exercise I recently met a woman who claimed that she didn’t want to exercise because she feared losing her curves. That’s one of the craziest and laziest statement I’ve ever heard. Exercising will not make you look less attractive nor will it cause you to lose your curves. I know plenty of thick women who exercise and still maintain their curvy physique. So ladies, don’t worry about getting your curvy card revoked. Besides, being healthy and exercising will prolong your life…

Adam Smith was a Scottish moral philosopher, who found logic in economic selfishness. He introduced capitalism, an economy driven by self-interest, which remains the basis of our economy today. It is a political and social system where the trade and industry are controlled by private owners for profit, rather than by the government. Adam Smith reasoned this with his metaphor of an invisible hand, which is described as the…

Karl Marx and Adam Smith are both economists with theories of capital accumulation. Karl Marx was a German doctor of Philosophy. Adam Smith who was a Scottish moral philosopher developed a similar theory. The theories differ in the way they perceive labor value. Smith’s theory has a clear argument on capital accumulation such as his explanation for unproductive/productive labor in comparison to Marx. Marx’s explanation of productive labor, critique of abstinence theory, exploitation, and the…

Adam Smith, the father of microeconomic theories, puts faith in a virtually unregulated, free market that maximizes the dynamic efficiency. In his view, an ideal system of market should be based on free competition, increasing size of market, and considerable capital accumulation. He believes the production function is an increasing return to scale that would expand the market, lead to internal and external economies of scale, and ultimately, lower the cost of production. With the foundation of…

Fall 2016 IPED 202 Final Exam Questions Which of the three findings in the article do you find most troubling about our economy and society? Please list and explain each briefly. (20 points) Unemployment rate increased highly so that people had hard time to find jobs. In the article, the annual survey depicts, "Unemployment skyrocketed to 10 percent and the jobless rate is still a stubbornly high 9.6 percent." Therefore, people hard to earn money if people do not have jobs. As the unemployment…