# Of the Beauty Which the Appearance of Utility Bestows Upon the Characters and the Actions of Men; and How Far the Perception of This Beauty May Be Regarded as One of the Original Principles of Approbation explained — The Theory of Moral Sentiments > Chapter companion for The Theory of Moral Sentiments by Adam Smith. ## What happens Smith argues that the perception of utility is not the primary ground of moral approbation; rather, a sense of propriety, distinct from utility, underlies our approval of virtues such as prudence, self-command, humanity, generosity, and public spirit. He illustrates how self-command and prudence are approved because they align with the impartial spectator's sentiments, and contrasts humanity (based on fellow-feeling) with generosity (which requires self-sacrifice and magnanimity). The chapter concludes that moral sentiments presuppose an impartial arbiter, whose sympathy grounds self-applause or self-condemnation. ## Themes in this chapter ### Virtue as Propriety and Self-Command Smith emphasizes that self-command and prudence are approved primarily for their propriety, not merely their utility, and that they align with the impartial spectator's sentiments. ### The Impartial Spectator The chapter repeatedly invokes the impartial spectator as the arbiter whose sympathy grounds moral approbation, especially in acts of generosity and public spirit. ### Justice as the Pillar of Society vs. Beneficence as Ornament Smith distinguishes humanity (based on sympathy) from generosity (requiring self-sacrifice), and notes that generosity is a virtue of men, while humanity is more characteristic of women. ## Character check-ins ### The Impartial Spectator Central to the chapter's argument: the impartial spectator's sympathy is the basis for approving self-command, generosity, and public spirit. ## Key lines > the usefulness of any disposition of mind is seldom the first ground of our approbation; and that the sentiment of approbation always involves in it a sense of propriety quite distinct from the perception of utility. Moral approval is not primarily based on how useful a trait is, but on a sense of propriety that is separate from utility. _Smith's core argument against reducing morality to utility._ > That self-command, in the same manner, by which we restrain our present appetites, in order to gratify them more fully upon another occasion, is approved of, as much under the aspect of propriety, as under that of utility. Self-command is approved both because it is useful and because it aligns with the spectator's sense of propriety. _Illustrates the dual basis of approval for self-command._ > Humanity consists merely in the exquisite fellow-feeling which the spectator entertains with the sentiments of the persons principally concerned... But it is otherwise with generosity. We never are generous except when in some respect we prefer some other person to ourselves, and sacrifice some great and important interest of our own... Humanity is pure sympathy with others, while generosity requires self-sacrifice and a deliberate alignment with the impartial spectator's perspective. _Key distinction between two virtues often conflated._ ## Links - HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_theory_of_moral_sentiments_se/chapters/ii-of-the-beauty-which-the-appearance-of-utility-bestows-upon-the-characters-and-the-actions-of-men-and-how-far-the-perception-of-this-beauty-may-be-regarded-as-one-of-the-original-principles-of-approbation - Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_theory_of_moral_sentiments_se - All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_theory_of_moral_sentiments_se/chapters