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The Scottish Enlightenment and the Theory of Spontaneous Order (review)
- Journal of the History of Philosophy
- Johns Hopkins University Press
- Volume 28, Number 2, April 1990
- pp. 304-305
- 10.1353/hph.1990.0047
- Review
- Additional Information
- Purchase/rental options available:
304 JOURNAL OF THE HISTORY OF PHILOSOPHY 28:2 APRIL 199o value lies in the bibliographical details, not in the general claims about the broad outlines of Hume's influence in Germany. MANFRED KUEHN Purdue University Ronald Hamowy. The Scottish Enlightenment and the Theory of Spontaneous Order. The Journal of theHistory ofPhilosophyMonograph Series. Carbondale: Southern Illinois University Press, 1987. Pp. xii + 65. Paper, $1o.95. The theory of "spontaneous order" as elaborated by eighteenth-century Scotsmen is in Ronald Hamowy's words an "explanatory device for complex social phenomena" (6). As a term we learn that it originated in the writings of the modern-day political theorist F. A. Hayek (The Constitution of Liberty, 196o). As an idea, however, it has roots in Chinese political thought of the fourth century s.c. As a theory it hypothesizes that society's institutions (political, religious, legal, economic, moral) arise and evolve out of "the unanticipated result of a myriad of human actions operating through a process of adaptive evolution" not out of intentional design (4)- Hamowy stresses that the theory "refers only to those acts the unanticipated results of which issue in complex social patterns" (4). He writes clearly and convincingly within the defined area of discussion. The focus of the monograph is on the development and application of the theory of spontaneous order in the writings of the Scottish literati. Hamowy initially cites sources for the theory in the writings of Vico and Bossuet and then examines it in more detail in Mandeville's Fable of the Bees. From Mandeville he turns to the most important exponents of the theory--David Hume, Adam Smith, and Adam Ferguson. Ferguson, a key figure in the development of the sociological approach, is handled efficiently. Smith justly receives the greatest portion of attention, but more might have been said about Hume. Furthermore, one is led to wonder what contribution Francis Hutcheson may have made to the systemization of the theory. With Smith, Hamowy emphasizes the continuity of the theory of spontaneous order not only in the economic domain but also in his moral, legal, and historical thought. He explains the significance of the Smithian "invisible hand" and the argument for laissez-fairegovernment in the context of this theory. In the extensive endnotes Hamowy shows how these ideas have been reworked to different ends by subsequent economic and political theorists (a point elaborated on in the Conclusion). While economic liberalism was one consequence of acknowledging a model of spontaneous social order, it could also be (and was) appropriated as an argument for a conservative ideology. Hamowy continues his discussion with summaries of the contributions of four others Scottish thinkers. Henry Home (Lord Kames), Gilbert Stuart, Thomas Reid, and John Millar all shared or built upon the ideas of their fellow Scotsmen when they incorporated the theory of spontaneous order in their works. It would also have been interesting to know what uses other writers such as James Dunbar, David Dalrymple (Lord Hailes), James Burnett (Lord Monboddo), and William Robertson made of the BOOK REVIEWS 305 theory. Likewise a look at Edward Gibbon, who was much influenced by the Scots, would have added to the discussion. Towards the end of the monograph Hamowy briefly turns to Dugald Stewart. His writings make frequent reference to the theory of spontaneous order. Their popularity in Britain and abroad helped to secure for the theory a place of importance in nineteenth-century philosophical, economic, political, and sociological discourse. Hamowy has reestablished scholarly interest in the theory, but more remains to be done. One wonders, for example, whether the implications of this theory varied with the degree of religious belief among its supporters. Moreover, were there those who simply rejected the idea of spontaneous order? Is there evidence of it at some level in the fictional writings of the day? In these areas and no doubt in others more might have been said about a theory described by the author as "perhaps the most significant sociological contribution" of the Scottish Enlightenment (3). The Journal of the History of PhilosophyMonograph Series provides a forum for the publication of studies "between article length and standard book size" ("8o to 1~o pages"). Ronald Hamowy...