Smith's theory of authority is nonliberal both in the classical liberal sense of Locke and Buchanan and in the social liberal sense of Bentham and Marx. Smith distinguishes civil contract from political contract: While the state protects rights à la civil contract, its differentia specifica is the political contract, which involves authority and allegiance. Allegiance is neither an involuntary act nor the product of choice à la civil contract. Allegiance characterizes the enlistment of low-rank agents in the service of high-rank agents whose station is desired. For Smith, admiration of the powerful is the origin of political order which is a nonliberal view.
Download Info
To our knowledge, this item is not available for
download. To find whether it is available, there are three
options:
1. Check below under "Related research" whether another version of this item is available online.
2. Check on the provider's web page
whether it is in fact available.
3. Perform a search for a similarly titled item that would be
available.
For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its listing, contact: (Thomas Wolpert).
Related research
Keywords:
Find related papers by JEL classification: D70 - Microeconomics - - Analysis of Collective Decision-Making - - - General B4 - Schools of Economic Thought and Methodology - - Economic Methodology