Adam Smith's Ethics

Mueller begins a series of posts about Adam Smith's ethical system as laid out in The Theory of Moral Sentiments.

Adam Smith's ethical system is centered around the human capacity to put ourselves in another's place.

Imagining ourselves in the position of an impartial spectator can help us hone our sympathetic emotions and ethical reasoning.

Commutative justice has some peculiar features not shared by the other virtues in Adam Smith's moral system.

While Smith thought the state should be restricted to questions of commutative justice, he didn't think other aspects of ethics were merely matters of taste.