''Essays on Philosophical Subjects'', by the

Scottish Scottish usually refers to something of, from, or related to Scotland, including: *Scottish Gaelic, a Celtic Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family native to Scotland *Scottish English *Scottish national identity, the Scottish ide ...

economist

Adam Smith Adam Smith (baptised 1723 – 17 July 1790) was a Scottish economist and philosopher who was a pioneer in the field of political economy and key figure during the Scottish Enlightenment. Seen by some as the "father of economics"——— or ...

, is a history of

astronomy Astronomy is a natural science that studies celestial objects and the phenomena that occur in the cosmos. It uses mathematics, physics, and chemistry in order to explain their origin and their overall evolution. Objects of interest includ ...

until Smith's own era, plus some thoughts on

ancient physics Ancient history is a time period from the beginning of writing and recorded human history through late antiquity. The span of recorded history is roughly 5,000 years, beginning with the development of Sumerian cuneiform script. Ancient hi ...

and

metaphysics Metaphysics is the branch of philosophy that examines the basic structure of reality. It is traditionally seen as the study of mind-independent features of the world, but some theorists view it as an inquiry into the conceptual framework of ...

. This work was published posthumously (after death), in 1795, using material which Smith had intended to publish but had not prepared at the time of his death in 1790. This was done by his literary executors, two old friends from the Scottish academic world; physicist/chemist

Joseph Black Joseph Black (16 April 1728 – 6 December 1799) was a British physicist and chemist, known for his discoveries of magnesium, latent heat, specific heat, and carbon dioxide. He was Professor of Anatomy and Chemistry at the University of Glasgow ...

and pioneering

geologist A geologist is a scientist who studies the structure, composition, and History of Earth, history of Earth. Geologists incorporate techniques from physics, chemistry, biology, mathematics, and geography to perform research in the Field research, ...

James Hutton James Hutton (; 3 June Old Style and New Style dates, O.S. 1726 – 26 March 1797) was a Scottish geologist, Agricultural science, agriculturalist, chemist, chemical manufacturer, Natural history, naturalist and physician. Often referred to a ...

. A brief account of their work appears in a section entitled 'Advertisement by the Editors'. The book consists in distinct works: * The History of Astronomy * The History of the Ancient Physics * The History of the Ancient Logics and

Metaphysics Metaphysics is the branch of philosophy that examines the basic structure of reality. It is traditionally seen as the study of mind-independent features of the world, but some theorists view it as an inquiry into the conceptual framework of ...

* Of the External Senses * Of the Nature of that Imitation which takes place in what are called The Imitative Arts The ''History of Astronomy'' is the largest of these and is thought to have been written in the 1750s, before Smith's major works. The overall understanding is excellent, though the

Glasgow Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...

Edition of 1976 includes some detailed criticism of his use of sources. It also defends him for calling Newton a philosopher rather than a

scientist A scientist is a person who Scientific method, researches to advance knowledge in an Branches of science, area of the natural sciences. In classical antiquity, there was no real ancient analog of a modern scientist. Instead, philosophers engag ...

; the word 'scientist' did not exist before 1839. The ''History of Astronomy'' is divided in four sections. *Section I : "Of the effect of Unexpectedness, or of Surprise". (§1-10) *Section II : "Of wonder, or of Effects of Novelty". (§1-12) * Section III : "Of the Origin of Philosophy". (§1-7) Here Smith defines the Philosphy as a rational explication of the world. *Section IV : "The History of Astronomy". (§1-76) Smith outlines the history of modern astrometric systems. He appoints : Copernic, Gallilee,

Kepler Johannes Kepler (27 December 1571 – 15 November 1630) was a German astronomer, mathematician, astrologer, natural philosopher and writer on music. He is a key figure in the 17th-century Scientific Revolution, best known for his laws of p ...

, Descartes, and Newton system. The modern astronomy is no longer mathematical but of the physical order. According to smith, if a system is simpler and more efficient in its explanations, then it is more likely to be closer to the way nature works. It also contains Smith's first mention of the

invisible hand The invisible hand is a metaphor inspired by the Scottish economist and moral philosopher Adam Smith that describes the incentives which free markets sometimes create for self-interested people to accidentally act in the public interest, even ...

: : For it may be observed, that in all

Polytheistic Polytheism is the belief in or worship of more than one Deity, god. According to Oxford Reference, it is not easy to count gods, and so not always obvious whether an apparently polytheistic religion, such as Chinese folk religions, is really so, ...

religions, among savages, as well as in the early ages of antiquity, it is the irregular events of nature only that are ascribed to the agency and power of the gods. Fire burns, and water refreshes; heavy bodies descend, and lighter substances fly upwards, by the necessity of their own nature; nor was the invisible hand of

Jupiter Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun and the List of Solar System objects by size, largest in the Solar System. It is a gas giant with a Jupiter mass, mass more than 2.5 times that of all the other planets in the Solar System combined a ...

ever apprehended to be employed in those matters.See * "Of the External senses" deals with each sense in turn. According to Smith, each idea is an expression of a sensory impression. He concluded the previous section intituled "The History of the Ancient Logics and

" on the question of language. The language motif is continued. Touching (§3-21) Tasting (§22) Smelling (§23) Hearing (§24-88) The order of passage is not insignificant. Smith affirmed that every sens expect touching is directly linked to an organ. Usually, seeing is the sens that is the more mobilised. Indeed, he has a value of true, clarity and knowledge. In this part of the essay, two philosophical debates are mobilised : * The distinction between the primary and secondary qualities. * The Molyneux problem.

Notes

External links

Online edition
{{Adam Smith Books by Adam Smith Metaphysics books