Economics Dictionary of ArgumentsHome
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| Sympathy: Sympathy refers to the capacity to understand and share the feelings or perspectives of others. It involves emotional resonance and is a foundational concept in moral philosophy and ethics. One of the most influential philosophers to write about sympathy was David Hume, who argued that sympathy is the basis of all moral judgments. See also Understanding, Intersubjectivity, Emotions, Communiction, Judgments, Ethics, Morals, Perspective, D. Hume._____________Annotation: The above characterizations of concepts are neither definitions nor exhausting presentations of problems related to them. Instead, they are intended to give a short introduction to the contributions below. – Lexicon of Arguments. | |||
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Adam Smith on Sympathy - Dictionary of Arguments
Otteson I 14 Sympathy/Adam Smith/Otteson: A central claim of TMS(1) is that human beings naturally desire what Smith calls a “mutual sympathy of sentiments” with their fellows. For Smith, “sympathy” here was not equivalent to pity; rather, it was a technical term that he used in accordance with its etymological meaning of “feeling with” (TMS(1): 10). When Smith claims we all desire mutual sympathy of sentiments, he means that we long to see our own judgments and sentiments echoed in others. It gives us pleasure to discover that others judge people, actions, and behavior the same way we do. And it gives us a feeling of displeasure when we discover that others judge differently from the way we do. Cf. >Intersubjectivity. Exchange/behavior/community: Because we all seek out this “sympathy” (TMS(1): 13–16) - or “harmony,” “concord,” or “correspondence” of sentiments (other terms Smith uses) - much of social life is a give-and-take whereby people alternately try, on the one hand, to moderate their own sentiments so that others can “enter into them” and, on the other hand, try to arouse others’ sentiments so that they match their own. 1. Smith, Adam (1982) [1759]. The Theory of Moral Sentiments. D. D. Raphael and A. L. Macfie, eds. Liberty Fund._____________Explanation of symbols: Roman numerals indicate the source, arabic numerals indicate the page number. The corresponding books are indicated on the right hand side. ((s)…): Comment by the sender of the contribution. Translations: Dictionary of Arguments The note [Concept/Author], [Author1]Vs[Author2] or [Author]Vs[term] resp. "problem:"/"solution:", "old:"/"new:" and "thesis:" is an addition from the Dictionary of Arguments. If a German edition is specified, the page numbers refer to this edition. |
EconSmith I Adam Smith The Theory of Moral Sentiments London 2010 EconSmithV I Vernon L. Smith Rationality in Economics: Constructivist and Ecological Forms Cambridge 2009 Otteson I James R. Otteson The Essential Adam Smith Vancouver: Fraser Institute. 2018 |
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