Browse Items (23 total)

Adam Smith describes an economic system designed such that individual greed and selfish passions are leveraged to do societal good. He intends to phase out the mercantilist system that was dominant at the time.

At the same time that European philosophers were struggling with the idea of the mind, East Asian cultures were developing their own interpretation of the human brain. This image, found in a Tibetan Monastery, provides insight into how many…

The Wealth of Nations, is the magnum opus of the Scottish economist and moral philosopher Adam Smith. First published in 1776, the book offers one of the world's first collected descriptions of what builds nations' wealth, and is today a fundamental…

Analysis of the Church's power in the matters of conscience and human judgment and their role in concern to an obstinate offender

This quote shows the correlation between the acquisition of goods and knowledge. Sterne concludes that the satisfaction of new acquisition fuels the desire for more.

A mezzotint portrait of philosopher John Locke, mid-18th century

This is a portrait of the 18th century philosopher Edmund Burke. His thoughts included societal manners and virtues, and he emphasized the importance of religion in a society. Notably, he supported the colonies in America to resist the unfair…

This painting of a scowling man wearing a scholar’s cap and brown gown has a powerful impression and a slightly threatening mood. It is said that this painting was originally painted as a personification of philosophy.

17th century perception of slavery

In Kant's first publication, he describes the categorical imperative: actions that are inherently good in themselves and do not use other actions or people as a means to an end.