The Reconsideration Of "Adam Smith-Problem"

The human nature is an ancient but also eternal topic in ethics. Take the goodness and wickedness of human nature, selfishness and altruism as the watershed, various ethics schools have formed in the history. As the founder of modern economics, Adam Smith, taking selfishness and altruism as the starting point, left us two great works. But "Adam Smith-Problem" has been raised because of controversial interpretation about them. The reconsideration of "Adam Smith-problem" has become the original formula of the economic-ethics study where learners must begin with. Its solution is the definition of the relationship between two social value functions that is economics and morality; is the counterevidence to dual existence in the "economic man" of selfishness and the "moral man" of altruism .As Smith told us that a healthy market economy is an ethical market economy.This study mainly includes seven parts:The first part expounds the study production in "Adam Smith-Problem" of domestic and overseas scholars.The second part explains the study in purpose, significance, clue and the innovation of possibility.The third part is about the origin of "Adam Smith-Problem", and the various factions of the position and views on this problem. Then point out the essence of the "Adam Smith-Problem" is the understanding of the relationship between selfishness and altruism in human nature.The IV part is the analytic theory of human nature proposed by Smith's teacher Hume who had a great influence on him. Then present the dual concept of human nature by Smith: that is, self-love arid sympathy.The V part is the analysis of rational limits on the "economic man" who has taken a selfish nature as the essential character who has taken altruistic nature as the essential character. This part is concluded by that people are dual existence of selfishness and altruism.The VI part clarifies the important role of building the natural order and human order between the selfishness and the altruism by the "invisible hand" of economic laws and the "visible hand" of the system design.The VII part conclude that people are dual existence of selfishness and altruism, and "two hands" have important role in building the natural order and social order.