"Das Adam Smith problem today: How to reconcile economics and moral philosophy"
DISCUSSED by
Jack Russell Weinstein (Professor of Philosophy, University of North Dakota)
Ralf Erikkson (University lecturer in Economics, Åbo Akademi)
moderated by Uskali Mäki (Academy professor, University of Helsinki)
TIME: Monday 5 May, 14–16.
PLACE: Metsätalo/Forestry House, Unioninkatu 40, 2nd floor, room 6
http://www.helsinki.fi/teknos/opetustilat/keskusta/u40/ls6.htm
AID is the new forum for interdisciplinary conversation coordinated by the Finnish Centre of Excellence in the Philosophy of the Social Sciences, University of Helsinki. For the very idea and the programme, check http://www.helsinki.fi/tint/aid.htm. For further information, please contact Pekka Mäkelä, pekka.a.makela at helsinki.fi.
TOPIC of the session:
When one asks about the relationship between economics and morality, most people scoff. They think that the two have little to do with one another, since economics prioritizes profit and efficiency, and morality seeks happiness, goodness, and right action. Furthermore, ethics is a concern for philosophers, and most economists think that their discipline is a pretty hard science. These debates are not new and their epicenter is the relationship between Adam Smith's two books The Theory of Moral Sentiments and The Wealth of Nations. Some say they represent incompatible projects, others claim that they are all part of the same system. "Das Adam Smith Problem" – the questioning of Smith's philosophical coherence – is a metaphor for all debate about the relationship between money and virtue, and between the relevant disciplines to investigate these.
The guiding QUESTIONS for debaters to discuss:
(1) Why are we still talking about Adam Smith?
(2) Is there really an Adam Smith Problem?
(3) What makes Adam Smith historically important?
(4) Was Adam Smith a philosopher or an economist?
(5) Is the debate between the socialist left and the libertarian right really a debate about the Adam Smith Problem (as some might claim)?
(6) Is economics amoral? Has economics changed in how it regards morality?
(7) Is homo economicus a defensible idea?
(8) How does the Adam Smith problem fit into the larger philosophical problems of the day?
(9) Is Adam Smith still relevant today?
READINGS
Paganelli, Maria Pia. “The Adam Smith Problem in Reverse: Self-Interest in The Wealth of Nations and The Theory of Moral Sentiments.” History of Political Economy 40, no. 2 (2008): 365–82.
Rothschild, Emma and Sen, Amartya. “Adam Smith’s Economics” in The Cambridge Companion to Adam Smith (2006): 319–365.
Weinstein, Jack Russell. “Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy, entry on Adam Smith: http://www.iep.utm.edu/smith/
Weinstein, Jack Russell. video of lecture: “Is Money All There Is? ´Other Aspects of Life in Adam Smith’s Marketplace: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GKexMR55h-8
Wells, Thomas Rodham. Blog, The Philosophers’ Beard: “The real Adam Smith problem: How to 'live well' in commercial society: http://www.philosophersbeard.org/2013/09/the-real-adam-smith-problem-how-to-live.html
Check the following site for some of the readings: http://www.helsinki.fi/tint/aid.htm