ABSTRACT
This conclusion presents some closing thoughts on the key concepts discussed in the preceding chapters of this book. The book argues that sympathy is a forerunner of empathy. They both have affective and cognitive dimensions and involve feeling something analogous to that of the other. Smith's impartial spectator is a forerunner of Freud's superego. An important aspect of Smith's work is the tension between self-command and passions or instincts. The book states that the defenses are an integral but unseen part of Smith's theory and that they are necessary for adaptation. It then compares Smith's approach to Freud's and to contemporary psychoanalysis. Smith's approach in The Theory of Moral Sentiments (TMS) relies on pain and the pleasure principle. Wealth accumulation and the status obtained from it gives pleasure since it is admired, and avoids shame and pain, as argued in the TMS. Smith puts emphasis on 'tranquility of the mind' as a great source of happiness in the TMS.
