Final thoughts on Adam Smith’s 1784 Additions and Corrections to The Wealth of Nations

I began my survey of Adam Smith’s 1784 pamphlet, Additions and Corrections to the First and Second Editions of Dr. Adam Smith’s Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations, way back on 25 June 2026 (see here). Since then, we combed through Smith’s work line-by-line and paragraph-by-paragraph. Today (19 August!), I will conclude my in-depth survey with some final thoughts on Smith’s pamphlet as a whole. First off, it’s worth noting that Adam Smith was writing up his additions and corrections to The Wealth of Nations in 1784 while the French artist Jacques-Louis David was painting “Oath of the Horatii” (pictured below) in Paris. Like the father of the Horatii brothers, arming his sons for battle against the enemies of Rome, Smith’s pamphlet arms us for battle against mercantilism and the enemies of free markets! Among other things, Smith explores the relationship between wealth and power (here), makes the case for free trade (here), and levels a devastating critique of…