Luxury In The Scottish Enlightenment

The Luxury Debate in Eighteenth-Century Scotland Luxury was a core debate topic in the Scottish Enlightenment. Not only was it an economical phenomenon, but also a central moral and political issue of modernity. Scotland was going through a transition period, from becoming a poor part of Great Britain to a major world influence. Scotland was moving from its traditional Presbyterian ways of private and public virtue to a world of commerce, modernism, and industry. There was so much risk, so much apprehension. In a country with a history of poor wealth, Scotland, like any country, just wanted what would be best for its future and was hesitant to do anything harmful. The concept of luxury was at the core of debates throughout the Scottish Enlightenment

Mandeville justified this. Hume distinguished innocent luxury from good luxury. And supported innocent luxury for the national industries’ prosperity. Steuart encouraged luxury in common citizens in the first stages of both national and international trade, but he did not include luxury that decreases the vitality of people and the productive power they have. In this debate, innocent luxury was accepted as favorable, and it represented the phenomenon of a civilized and polished society, and is an indication of the quality of effective demand (book online page

The four stages theory composed of a hunters and fishers’ stage, herders’ stage, agricultural stage, and commerce stage; each stage built upon the other and was an enhancement to the previous. Hunters and gatherers would take what was in the natural world and use it for temporary needs. Your possessions included what you had your hands on. Herders collected animal products, using resources such as cows and chickens today, for milk and eggs tomorrow. In this stage, herded animals were a possession of those who herded them. The agricultural stage consisted of people using their resources and creating food for their usage later. In comparison to hunters and herders, the agricultural stage took resources, saved them and took extra steps in the food process, allowing a more stable form of food, plants that were planted, cultivated, and harvested. Lastly, the commerce society involved interactions with others through buying and selling to exchange goods. Talk about money currency, liquid possession with value. During the Eighteenth Century, Scotland was a flourishing Commerce