Aspects of the Influence of F. Hutcheson on A. Smith

Enzo Pesciarelli

No 99, Working Papers from Universita' Politecnica delle Marche (I), Dipartimento di Scienze Economiche e Sociali

Abstract: In this paper I have attempted to show the Hutchesonian roots of Smith's approach in relation both to the role and character of the prudent man, with the attendant references to the sense of propriety, and the theory of value. As regards the first point, the paper claims that Smith construed the figure of the prudent man whose behaviour is based on the sense of propriety in a way reminiscent of Hutcheson's treatment of the good man whose actions are directed by the sense of dignity. In both cases the figures represent the epitome of social mediation. As to the theory of value, Hutcheson's analysis of price clearly shows its indebtedness to Pufendorf and Carmichael by giving specific prominence to the role of subjective judgement as regards the determinants of value. From this point of view Hutcheson's analysis of value and prices apparently adheres to the traditional natural-law approach, which emphasised the role of scarcity, demand and supply. There is however another side to Hutcheson's thought, a side which clearly points to an alternative solution, although it is embedded in a juridical apparatus. In other parts of the System, Hutcheson placed special emphasis on his search for a real and almost invariable measure of value, which he identified in the average amount of labour required to produce standard subsistence commodities. Moreover, in his examination of the new contractual relationships binding 'servants' and 'masters' together, Hutcheson recognised - albeit in a rudimentary form, though this suggests an evolutionary bent to his understanding of the development of society - the existence of a surplus labour-based value which apparently rests on a natural basis.

Pages: 22
Date: 1997-11
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