This book investigates the problematisation in Adam Smith's moral philosophy of a classical question: what makes us human beings from a moral standpoint? To do this, Riccardo Bonfiglioli explores the relationship between the concepts of âhuman natureâ, âmindâ and âthe selfâ in order to reconstruct Smithâs theory of subjectivity. After providing a systematic reconstruction of Adam Smithâs conceptions of âhuman natureâ , âmindâ and âthe selfâ â exploring some aspects of Smithâs philosophy (nature, philosophy of history, sympathy and imagination) and their empirical expressions (education, conduct and character) â Bonfiglioli argues that, in Adam Smithâs work, the meaning of âmoral human beingsâ would depend on the human beingâs effort to live in harmony with oneself and the others. According to Bonfiglioli, in Smithâs moral theory, this âharmony with oneself and the othersâ would be achieved in relation to a certain kind of awareness that can be possible when human beings try to judge the conduct and try to act according to the impartial spectator. Specifically, this impartial spectator is reinterpreted by the author in the light of the concept of immediacy.
