Adam Smith Self Interest

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Through the major writing from two of his books The Wealth of Nations and The Moral Sentiments, Adam Smith, renowned for developing the leissez faire theory, has managed to convey the meaning of self interest and the multiple roles it plays in society. In his writing he has also underlined the significance of free market capitalism and influence millions of people into following his doctrine even till today. This essay will analyse a few factors aligning with self interest and emphasise how they motivate individuals to a great extent.

Adam Smith referred to self interest as an intrinsic nature in humans derived from their perpetual drive to continually strive for what is beneficial and imperative to their own self as an individual without …show more content…

439). Smith assumed that if systems of restriction were abolished, natural liberty will take place on its own (Smith WN ex. 8). He firmly asserted, everyone should be left on their own to follow their interest and compete with others who are doing the same as long as no one breaches any codes of justice (Smith WN ex. 9). The reason he provided was that human capacity for knowledge has limitations which lead to mistakes or aggravation. In addition, any individual in their local environment exercises better prudence on what type of domestic industry his assets should be allocated for and what product could yield the largest fortune compared to unaware government officials. Therefore, if a political figure were to administer private people on how should they utilise their financial assets, not only would the statesman attempting to take on the role of designating the free market flow which occurs in natural liberty, he would also be minimising the progress of economic growth as the particular role cannot be substituted by any living being,(Smith WN ex. 7-8). According to Smith (WN ex. 9), the system of natural liberty only allows the state to perform three obligations as follows: first of all, to safeguard the nation from any foreign invasion and assault; next, to preserve every single member of the society from harm, injustice and oppression from another member within the same community and especially in the economic sector; lastly, to maintain public infrastructures and provide education for every living person of all ages (Smith WN ex. 9). Furthermore, Smith objected to redundant government interference in economical and social aspects because legislators often do not possess the

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