The System of Natural Liberty

By Art Carden and Deirdre Nansen McCloskey

In The System of Natural Liberty, Deirdre Nansen McCloskey and Art Carden revisit the lessons of Adam Smith's classic work, The Wealth of Nations, on the 250th anniversary of its publication.

In The Wealth of Nations, Adam Smith put forth the key to prosperity as an "obvious and simple system of natural liberty" of "peace, easy taxes, and a tolerable administration of justice." Now, 250 years after its publication, Deirdre Nansen McCloskey and Art Carden revisit Adam Smith's classic work in a modern context. Using contemporary examples--from baseball trading cards to ridesharing and from supermarkets to immigration--they show how people pursuing their own interests have led to an enormous explosion of wealth and human well-being since the fateful year of The Wealth of Nations' publication--1776.

McCloskey and Carden call Adam Smith's vision one of "primary liberalism." America's Founders took it seriously. Yet Smith's lessons, while timeless, need to be relearned every generation. As the disastrous collectivist experiments of the past two centuries show, it is not grand central planning schemes, but economic liberty, and the idea of commerce as an honorable pursuit, that have made possible The Great Enrichment--the astounding increase in human well-being that began around 200 years ago and continues today. In The System of Natural Liberty, McCloskey and Carden take the reader on a journey through the world Adam Smith made.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1969284218
• ISBN13: 9781969284212
• Release Date: December 2026
• Publisher: Cato Institute
• Length: 288 Pages
• Weight: 1.06 lbs.
• Dimensions: 6.0" x 9.0"