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In the “Overture” to his grandly symphonic The Enlightenment: An Interpretation, Peter Gay describes the “international type” of the philosophe as a “facile, articulate, doctrinaire, sociable, secular man of letters.” On this definition, was Adam Smith a philosophe?
Yes and no. Unlike his French counterparts and even his bosom friend David Hume, he led a retired life, much of it in the small Scottish town where he was born, and he lived with his mother until she died at a very advanced age. He was shy, destroyed most of his letters, and did not seem to relish giving brilliant performances, either in print or in conversation. He never fell afoul of civil or religious authority, had no mistresses, and engaged in no public quarrels.
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"A Discovery of Witches," by Deborah E. Harkness, remains in the lead on the hardcover fiction list this week.
David Brooks' "The Social Animal" tops hardcover nonfiction.
"The Imperfectionists," by Tom Rachman, takes the number one spot in paperback fiction.
"The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks," by Rebecca Skloot, takes the lead in paperback nonfiction.
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