EconTalk Book Club

Welcome to the EconTalk Book Club!

Dan Klein and Russ Roberts offer a six-part podcast series reading and discussing The Theory of Moral Sentiments (TMS), by Adam Smith.

See the List of TMS Podcasts below for the complete set of podcasts. See also the Links to the Book for various online, in-print, audio, and other media formats for the book.

If you would like to ask a question about the book, please use the comment sections for the individual podcasts or email Russ at mail@econtalk.org.

List of TMS Podcasts

• Episode 1--An Overview of the book. First podcast in series. Monday, April 6, 2009.
• Episode 2--A Discussion of Part I. Readings: Part I, from the Theory of Moral Sentiments. Detailed discussion. Wednesday, April 15, 2009.
• Episode 3--A Discussion of Part II. Readings: Part II, from the Theory of Moral Sentiments. Detailed discussion. Wednesday, April 22, 2009.
• Episode 4--A Discussion of Part III. Readings: Part III, from the Theory of Moral Sentiments. Detailed discussion. Wednesday, April 29, 2009.
• Episode 5--A Discussion of Parts III (cont.), IV and V. Readings: Part III, Part IV, and Part V, from the Theory of Moral Sentiments. Detailed discussion. Wednesday, May 13, 2009.
• Episode 6--A Discussion of Parts VI and VII, and Summary. Readings: Part III, Part VI, and Part VII, from the Theory of Moral Sentiments. Detailed discussion. Wednesday, May 27, 2009.

Links to the book:

• The Theory of Moral Sentiments, by Adam Smith. Online, free. 6th edition.
• The Theory of Moral Sentiments, by Adam Smith. Purchase (definitive edition, a bargain at $12). Liberty Fund Inc./Glasgow Edition. D. D. Raphael and A. L. Macfie, ed., 1976. 6th edition, with edition-change notes and introduction.
• The Theory of Moral Sentiments, by Adam Smith. Downloadable pdf file (26.6 MB), free. 6th edition.
• A correspondent has kindly noted that several editions of The Theory of Moral Sentiments are available for the Kindle at reasonable prices. Thanks for the pointer! We don't know if the editions are accurate, but if they are, it's a great option. Let us know your experience if you explore this route.
• A very generous correspondent has alerted us to his complete audio version, at two speeds, at Index of The Theory of Moral Sentiments. 6th edition. Text-to-speech recognition.
• Another correspondent has alerted us to an in-process audio version available for most sections in Part I and selected sections in Parts II-VI at LibriVox: The Theory of Moral Sentiments. According to LibriVox's cover information, the text appears to be drawn from an earlier (reprinted 1st?) edition than the one we are using, available online through adamsmith.org.
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Related resources:

• Biography of Adam Smith. Concise Encyclopedia of Economics.
• Timeline of Smith's life, at adamsmith.org.
• "Economics and the Ordinary Person: Re-reading Adam Smith", by Sam Fleischacker. Oct. 2004