The Theory of Moral Sentiments
EditionOriginal English text, Dublin 1777 (text of the fourth edition, 1774)
Before The Wealth of Nations, Adam Smith explained how sympathy and an impartial spectator shape our sense of right and wrong.
Also in the library: the complete Korean translation.
Anyone can read the first chapter. Join free to read to the end and download EPUB and PDF.
DRM-free files. Translation CC BY-NC 4.0; the original work is in the public domain.
About the book
Smith’s first book starts from a simple observation: however selfish we are, we feel with others, and we judge their feelings, and our own, by imagining how an impartial spectator would see them. From sympathy he builds an account of propriety, merit and demerit, conscience, the sense of duty, and the influence of fortune, utility, custom, and fashion on our moral judgments, ending with a survey of the moral philosophies before his own.
This edition prints the text used for our Korean translation: the Dublin edition of 1777, which reproduces Smith’s fourth edition of 1774. It has six parts, not the seven of the 1790 revision, and includes Smith’s essay on the first formation of languages. Eighteenth-century spelling is kept; ten misreadings, mostly of the long s, are corrected.
Highlights
- How selfish soever man may be supposed, there are evidently some principles in his nature, which interest him in the fortune of others
Contents
Anyone can read up to the first chapter. Chapters with a lock are open to free members.
Colophon
Original English text, Dublin 1777 (text of the fourth edition, 1774). Licensed CC BY-NC 4.0.Full colophon
The Theory of Moral Sentiments
Author · Adam Smith (1723–1790)
First publication · 1759, A. Millar, London, and A. Kincaid and J. Bell, Edinburgh.
Source text · A public-domain digital transcription of the edition printed in Dublin for J. Beatty and C. Jackson in 1777, which reproduces the text of Smith’s fourth edition (London, 1774).
Extent · Complete and unabridged · six parts, with the “Considerations concerning the First Formation of Languages” as an appendix · about 116,000 words
Copyright · The author died in 1790; the work is in the public domain worldwide.
This edition · The original English text, edited for Ether Library. The text itself is in the public domain. Ether Library’s editor’s note, this colophon, and the cover design are licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0).
Edition · English edition 1.0 · October 2026
Typography · Set in Lora (SIL Open Font License 1.1). Cover painting and design by Ether Library.
Text in the public domain · Front and back matter CC BY-NC 4.0
Ether Library · No. 0005