- 01Pin-Making as a Model of Specialization
- 02Manufacturing Versus Agricultural Division of Tasks
- 03Dexterity, Time Saving, and Machinery
- 04Philosophy and the Subdivision of Employment
- 05Universal Opulence from Specialized Production
The Wealth of Nations
Markets, specialization, institutions, and growth.
32Chapters
32Lessons
158Topics
Certificate of completion included
This course was produced by Cavua from a public-domain text.
Skills this course leaves you with.
- Explain how division of labour increases productivity and depends on market size
- Analyze how prices, wages, profits, rent, and interest are determined in an economy
- Describe the role of money, capital accumulation, and capital allocation in economic growth
- Evaluate the effects of mercantilism, tariffs, subsidies, treaties, and colonies on trade
- Compare different theories of national wealth, including agrarian and commercial systems
- Assess the contributions of towns, commerce, and institutions to long-term opulence
Curriculum
The full table of contents.
Every chapter, every lesson, every topic — laid out before you enroll. Click any chapter to expand it.
- Chapters
- 32
- Lessons
- 32
- Topics
- 158
- 01The Propensity to Truck, Barter, and Exchange
- 02Self-Interest in Everyday Market Transactions
- 03How Exchange Creates Occupational Specialization
- 04Natural Talents and the Effects of Custom
- 05Common Stock and Mutual Benefit Among Workers
- 01Why Small Markets Restrict Specialization
- 02Village Self-Sufficiency in Remote Regions
- 03Water-Carriage and the Expansion of Trade
- 04Mediterranean Navigation and Early Civilization
- 05Egypt, Bengal, and China as Early Commercial Regions
- 01The Inconvenience of Direct Barter
- 02The Search for a Common Measure of Value
- 03Money as the Universal Instrument of Commerce
- 04Metal Coinage and Standardized Payment
- 05The Historical Development of Monetary Exchange
- 01Real Price Versus Nominal Price
- 02Labour as the True Measure of Exchange Value
- 03Money as an Unstable Measure of Value
- 04Corn Prices and Long-Term Value Comparisons
- 05Silver, Gold, and the Changing Value of Money
- 01The Three Natural Components of Price
- 02Wages as the Reward of Labour
- 03Profit as the Return on Stock
- 04Rent as Payment for Land Use
- 05How Market Price Covers the Whole Annual Produce
- 01The Natural Price of Commodities
- 02Market Price Fluctuations from Supply and Demand
- 03Effectual Demand and the Ordinary Rate of Profit
- 04Monopoly Prices and Scarcity Rents
- 05Competition as the Regulator of Market Price
- 01Demand for Labour and the Price of Subsistence
- 02The Lowest Class of Labourers and Survival Wages
- 03Variations in Wages by Employment and Risk
- 04Custom, Necessity, and the Standard of Living
- 05Wages in Manufacturing Districts and Labourer Well-Being
- 01Competition and the General Rate of Profit
- 02Profit Differences Between Countries
- 03Interest, Risk, and the Borrowed Capital Premium
- 04Profits in Retail, Wholesale, and Foreign Trade
- 05Why Profits Vary by Employment and Circumstance
- 01Compensating Differences in Wages and Profits
- 02Town and Country Wage Differences
- 03Education, Apprenticeship, and Labour Mobility
- 04Poor Laws and the Regulation of Labour Markets
- 05Occupational Risk, Prestige, and Remuneration
- 01Rent as the Price of Land Use
- 02Fertility, Situation, and Differential Rent
- 03Special Crops and High-Rent Gardens
- 04Corn as the Principal Produce of Land
- 05Coal Mines, Stone Quarries, and Other Extractive Rents
- 01Stock for Immediate Consumption and for Profit
- 02Fixed Capital and Circulating Capital
- 03Tools, Materials, and Wages as Capital Uses
- 04The Revenue Replaced by Productive Stock
- 05Capital as the Basis of Ongoing Production
- 01Money as a Circulating but Unproductive Asset
- 02Paper Money and the Economy of Coin
- 03Banking Operations and the Use of Notes
- 04Banking Excesses and Financial Instability
- 05The Cost of Maintaining a Monetary System
- 01Parsimony as the Immediate Cause of Capital Growth
- 02Productive Labour Versus Unproductive Labour
- 03The Annual Produce and the Maintenance of Labourers
- 04Capital Accumulation Through Frugality
- 05How Consumption and Waste Reduce Capital
- 01Stock Lent at Interest as a Distinct Use of Capital
- 02The Borrower’s Risk and the Lender’s Security
- 03Competition Among Borrowers and Lenders
- 04The Natural Rate of Interest
- 05Interest as a Share of Annual Produce
- 01Wholesale Trade and the Replacement of Capitals
- 02Home Trade, Foreign Trade, and the Carrying Trade
- 03Capital Allocation by Expected Profit
- 04The Relative Advantage of Domestic Employment
- 05How Merchants Choose Among Competing Uses of Capital
- 01The Natural Order of Economic Development
- 02Agriculture Before Manufacture and Commerce
- 03Town Growth Following Rural Improvement
- 04How Capital Follows the Course of Profit
- 05Opulence as the Result of Gradual Improvement
- 01Feudal Tenure and the Condition of Villanage
- 02Irregular and Oppressive Public Taxes
- 03The Burdens of Medieval Landholding
- 04Why Agriculture Advanced Slowly After Rome
- 05The Social Structure of the Ancient European Countryside
- 01Chartered Privileges and Urban Liberties
- 02Town Industry and the Rise of Manufactures
- 03The Growth of Spitalfields and Textile Production
- 04Urban Independence from Feudal Lords
- 05How Towns Became Centers of Trade and Craft
- 01Town Merchants as Buyers of Rural Produce
- 02The Spending Power of Urban Residents
- 03Landlords, Farmers, and the Influence of Town Demand
- 04The Stability of Commercial Improvement
- 05How Urban Trade Raises Agricultural Productivity
- 01Wealth as Bullion and Trade Surplus
- 02Import Restrictions and Export Encouragement
- 03Money, Plate, and the Balance of Trade
- 04Drawbacks, Bounties, and Commercial Policy
- 05The Mercantile System’s Assumptions About National Gain
- 01Import Bans on Goods That Can Be Made at Home
- 02The Effects of Free Trade on Domestic Employment
- 03Mercantile Arguments for Restriction
- 04Consumer Prices and the Cost of Protection
- 05How Domestic Monopoly Shapes Trade Policy
- 01Extraordinary Restraints on Disadvantageous Trade Partners
- 02Coin, Bullion, and the Measurement of Trade Balances
- 03Banking, Paper Currency, and Foreign Payments
- 04Colonial and European Trade Imbalances
- 05How Balance-of-Trade Doctrine Shapes Policy
- 01Drawbacks as Refunds of Duties on Re-exportation
- 02Encouraging Trade Through Duty Rebates
- 03The Limits of Drawback Policy
- 04How Drawbacks Support Merchants and Manufacturers
- 01Bounties as Export Incentives
- 02How Subsidies Alter Foreign Market Prices
- 03Bounties and the Domestic Price of Goods
- 04Corn Bounties and Agricultural Trade
- 05The Policy Costs of Export Subsidies
- 01Treaties That Bind Tariffs and Market Access
- 02Most-Favoured-Nation Clauses and Reciprocity
- 03Treaties, Coinage, and Banking Arrangements
- 04How Treaties Affect National Trade Policy
- 01Motives for Establishing New Colonies
- 02The Prosperity of Settler Colonies
- 03Colonial Government and Public Expenses
- 04Monopoly Trade Between Colony and Mother Country
- 05The Strategic and Commercial Value of Colonies
- 01Mercantile Monopoly and National Power
- 02Colonial Trade and the Burden of Defence
- 03The Limits of Exclusive Trading Companies
- 04Bounties, Materials, and Manufacturing Policy
- 05Why Mercantile Policy Fails to Increase Real Wealth
- 01The Economists and the Agricultural System
- 02Land as the Sole Source of Net Produce
- 03Critiques of Agricultural Exclusiveness
- 04Water Distribution and Agricultural Productivity
- 05Why Manufacturing and Commerce Also Create Value
- 01Defense and the Maintenance of Armies
- 02Justice, Police, and the Administration of Law
- 03Public Works and Institutions for Commerce
- 04The Expense of Sovereign Functions
- 05Government as Provider of Security and Infrastructure
- 01The Revenue of the Sovereign and the Commonwealth
- 02Fees, Tolls, and User Charges
- 03Public Schools, Universities, and Institutional Funding
- 04Church Revenues and State Support
- 05Taxes on Land, Houses, Profits, Wages, and Consumption
- 01The Growth of Public Debt Through War Finance
- 02Funding Systems and the Annual Charge of Debt
- 03The Effects of Debt on State Power and Credit
- 04Debt, Colonial Revenue, and Imperial Finance
- 05Why Public Debt Threatens Long-Term Prosperity
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