Sophie de Grouchy’s Letters on Sympathy – A Critical Engagement with Adam Smith’s the Theory of Moral Sentiments

These references help anchor the author’s arguments and provide additional sources for his interpretation of Smith writings. I am not a philosopher; I am a legal academic. Consequently, my interest in Smith runs more deeply in favour of his work on jurisprudence. An area of Smith’s work that Schliesser under explores. I think this is something that needs closer attention because Smith was committed to justice as the primary pillar of society and therefore, I believe, he positioned justice and jurisprudence as a core aspect of his integrated theory of social organisation. Having said this however, I note that Schliesser does provide some interesting discussion about property and the role of law in the development of government and social institutions. This discussion is valuable, particularly because it focuses on Smith’s writings other than what we can learn from the Lectures on Jurisprudence (LJ). I find this to be very helpful because I think it acknowledges that much about Smith’s theory of jurisprudence is grounded in his other writings. This is a point that I have recognised in my own work, but is also one that is not fully appreciated by those who treat the LJ as something other than a fully integrated part of Smith overarching theory of social organisation. Smith’s work is integrated, as Schliesser suggests, and the core of his theory of jurisprudence is established in TMS, and WN. In the LJ we get additional evidence for ideas raised elsewhere but, in many ways, the LJ are primarily descriptive presentations of the law and its history as understood at the time. Smith’s approach to jurisprudence is made more theoretical when we see LJ as part of a broader integrated discussion of his system of social organisation. Schliesser’s work helps us see this richer and more integrated aspect of Smith’s work. This is a wonderful book in which Schliesser does what he sets out to do. He develops a deeply thoughtful book about Smith as a philosopher, and he demonstrates that Smith can be understood as a highly theoretical thinker. He presents Smith as having a unifying vision of human nature and social progress, and as a systematic thinker who is interested in shaping public opinion. In writing the book, Schliesser demonstrates breadth and depth of knowledge about Smith in particular and about philosophy generally. This is an important book for philosophers and to my delight also for lawyers. The book makes valuable reading for anyone interested in a better understanding of Smith and his works.