'People of the same trade seldom meet together ... but the converation ends in a conspiracy against the publick, or in some contrivance to raise prices.'
  
In addressing the nature and causes of the wealth of nations, Adam Smith made one of the most potent contributions to subsequent ideological history. Recently, successive British governments have invoked his policy recommendations of free trade and laissez-faire to aid their extension of privatization and market effectiveness into areas such as health and education.
 
Smith didd more than write an economics textbook: the Wealth of Nations is a panoramic narrative about the struggle for indiviual liberty and general prosprity in history.

Where othre selected editions highlight Books One to Three, this edition includes generous sections from all five books, and places Smith's inquiry into its historical, intellectual, and cultural context.

 
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