Until the last quarter of the 20th century, the fact that the father of political economy had also written a work of moral philosophy was a source of embarrassment or, with a few exceptions, was treated as a minor footnote in the history of economic ideas.

The success and subsequent idolization of his economic work cast a heavy shadow on the evaluation of his philosophical contributions. However, with the recent revival of international discussion regarding Adam Smith and the Scottish Enlightenment in general, there has been a growing sense that The Theory of Moral Sentiments is one of the most important books in moral philosophy.

The issues that occupy Smith include the formation of moral evaluations of motives and the consequences of actions, the formation of the sense of duty, the influence of customs and traditions, and the importance of self-control and self-regulation.

At the center of his approach lies not the selfish calculation of results nor the abstract logical imperative, but the functioning of the feelings of sympathy, through which the 'natural' inclinations of self-interest on one hand and the recognition of others on the other seek terms for compromise.

Written during a time of moral crisis and rapid economic development in a society experiencing dramatic tensions between deeply rooted traditions and pressing modernization, this book was an integral part of an ambitious plan that was destined to remain unfinished. Smith's plan included, in addition to ethics, economics, the study of the legal system, and the study of governance and political administration.

Fragments of this work are The Wealth of Nations, The Theory of Moral Sentiments (the only works published during the author's lifetime), and his students' notes from his lectures on law.

The ideological obsessions of the 19th and 20th centuries took advantage of the unfinished nature of his work to construct their Procrustean interpretative narratives. The limits of these narratives are revealed by the richness of contemporary approaches and the interdisciplinarity of modern research and discussion.

On one hand, the moral, economic, and cultural crisis of 'globalization,' and on the other hand, the highlighting of the importance of emotions by modern cognitive sciences, create a fertile environment in which the ideas developed in The Theory of Moral Sentiments, one of the greatest works of the Enlightenment, can serve as a source of inspiration and critical reevaluation toward directions that transcend the horizon of the conditions of their birth.

[Excerpt from the text on the back cover of the edition]