Adam Smith and the Virtue of Justice

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.15448/1984-6746.2019.1.31597

Keywords:

Virtues. Punishment. Justice. Law. Adam Smith.

Abstract

the central aim of this paper is to reflect on the role and meaning of the criterion of justice in Adam Smith’s thought, especially considering The Theory of Moral Sentiments, and partially Lectures on Jurisprudence and An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations. the basic intention is to try to outline a theory of justice that we could find in the works of Smith, particularly in his work of the 1759, namely, The Theory of Moral Sentiments. to this end, I will begin by clarifying some central concepts of his sentimentalist moral theory, such as, sympathy, impartial spectator and invisible hand. Subsequently, I will investigate the role of virtues in this anti-utilitariam normative theory and the distinction between negative and positive virtues. Given this, the next step will be to examine Smith’s conception of retributive justice, which seems to defend a hybrid theory of punishment by encompassing retributivist, consequentialist, expressivist, and rehabilitative aspects. Finally, I will reflect about the meaning of justice as a negative virtue and its connection with the law.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

Author Biography

Denis Coitinho, UNISINOS - Universidade do Vale do Rio dos Sinos

Professor do Programa de Pós-graduação em Filosofia da UNISINOS.

References

ANSCOMBE, G. E. M. Modern Moral Philosophy. In: CRISP, Roger; SLOTE, Michael (ed.). Virtue Ethics. New York: Oxford University Press, 1998. p. 26-44.

BIANCHI , A. M.; SANT OS, A. T. L. Além do cânon: mão invisível, ordem natural e instituições. Estudos Econômicos, São Paulo, v. 37, n. 3, p. 635-662, 2007.

https://doi.org/10.1590/s0101-41612007000300007 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1590/S0101-41612007000300007

BROADIE, Alexandre. Sympathy and the Impartial Spectator. In: HAAKONSSEN, K. (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Adam Smith. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2006. p. 158-188.

https://doi.org/10.1017/ccol0521770599.007 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/CCOL0521770599.007

BROOKS, Thom. Punishment and Moral Sentiments. The Review of Metaphysics, Washington, DC, v. 66, n. 2, p. 281-293, 2012a.

BROOKS, Thom. Punishment. New York: Routledge, 2012b. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203929421

CERQUEIRA, Hugo da Gama. Adam Smith e seu contexto: o iluminismo escocês. Economia e Sociedade, Campinas, v. 26, p. 1-28, 2006.

CERQUEIRA . Sobre a Filosofia Moral de Adam Smith. Síntese, Revista de Filosofia, Belo Horizonte, v. 35, n. 111, p. 57-86, 2008.

https://doi.org/10.20911/21769389v35n111p57-86/2008 DOI: https://doi.org/10.20911/21769389v35n111p57-86/2008

DARWALL, Stephen. Empathy and Adam Smith on Exchange. In: DARWALL, S. The second-person standpoint: morality, respect, and accountability. Cambridge, Mass: Harvard University Press, 2009. p. 43-48. DOI: https://doi.org/10.2307/j.ctv1bzfp0f

https://doi.org/10.1017/s0953820808003397 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/S0953820808003397

FEINBERG, Joel. Doing and Deserving: essays in the Theory of Responsibility. Princeton, New Jersey: Princeton University Press, 1970.

https://doi.org/10.1017/s0012217300028250 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/S0012217300028250

HAAKONSSEN, Knud. The Science of a Legislator: The Natural Jurisprudence of David Hume and Adam Smith. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1989.

https://doi.org/10.1017/s0953820800000625 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/S0953820800000625

HAAKONSSEN, Knud. Introduction: The Coherence of Smith`s Thought. In: HAAKONSSEN, K. (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Adam Smith. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2006. p. 1-21.

https://doi.org/10.1017/ccol0521770599.001 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/CCOL0521770599.001

HAMPTON, Jean. The Moral Education Theory of Punishment. Philosophy and Public Affairs, Hanover, PA, v. 13, p. 208-238, 1984.

LIEBERMAN, David. Adam Smith on Justice, Rights, and Law. In: HAAKONSSEN, K. (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Adam Smith. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2006. p. 214-245.

https://doi.org/10.1017/ccol0521770599.009 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/CCOL0521770599.009

MILLER, Eric. Sympathetic Exchange: Adam Smith and Punishment. Ratio Juris, Oxford, UK, v. 9, n. 2, p. 182-197, 1996.

https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9337.1996.tb00236.x DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9337.1996.tb00236.x

RAPHAEL, D. D.; MACFIE, A. L. Introduction. In: SMITH , A. The Theory of Moral Sentiments. Edited by D. D. Raphael and A. L. Macfie. The Glasgow Edition of the Works and Correspondence of Adam Smith, v. 1. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1976. p. 1-52.

https://doi.org/10.1093/actrade/9780198281894.book.1

RUSSELL, Paul. Freedom and Moral Sentiment: Hume`s way of Naturalizing Responsibility. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1995.

https://doi.org/10.1017/s0012217300047144 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/S0012217300047144

RUSSELL, Paul. Smith on Moral Sentiment and Moral Luck. History of Philosophy Quarterly, Champaign, IL, v. 16, n. 1, p. 37-58, 1999.

SALTER, John. Sympathy with the Poor: Theories of Punishment in Hugo Grotius and Adam Smith. History of Political Thought, Exeter, UK, v. 20, n. 1, p. 205-224, 1999.

SHAVER, Robert. Virtues, Utility, and Rules. In: HAAKONSSEN, K. (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Adam Smith. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2006. p. 189-213.

https://doi.org/10.1017/ccol0521770599.008 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/CCOL0521770599.008

SMITH , Adam. An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations. V. I and II . Edited by R. H. Campbell and A. S. Skinner; textual editor W. B. Todd. The Glasgow Edition of the Works and Correspondence of Adam Smith. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1976. v. 2.

https://doi.org/10.1017/s0018246x0001709x DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/S0018246X0001709X

SMITH , Adam. Lectures on Jurisprudence. Edited by R. L. Meek, D. D. Raphael, and P. G. Stein. The Glasgow Edition of the Works and Correspondence of Adam Smith. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1978. v. 5. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/actrade/9780198281887.book.1

https://doi.org/10.1093/oseo/instance.00042877 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/oseo/instance.00042877

SMITH , Adam. The Theory of Moral Sentiments. Edited by D. D. Raphael and A. L. Macfie. The Glasgow Edition of the Works and Correspondence of Adam Smith. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1976. v. 1.

https://doi.org/10.1093/actrade/9780198281894.book.1 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/actrade/9780198281894.book.1

STRAWSON, Peter. Freedom and Resentment. In: STRAWSON, P. Freedom and Resentment and Other Essays. London: Routledge, 2008. p. 1-28.

https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203882566 DOI: https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203882566

Published

2019-05-23

How to Cite

Coitinho, D. (2019). Adam Smith and the Virtue of Justice. Veritas (Porto Alegre), 64(1), e31597. https://doi.org/10.15448/1984-6746.2019.1.31597