# Section III: Of the Influence of Fortune Upon the Sentiments of Mankind, with Regard to the Merit or Demerit of Their Actions explained — The Theory of Moral Sentiments

> Chapter companion for The Theory of Moral Sentiments by Adam Smith.

## What happens

This section examines the tension between the abstract principle that moral praise or blame should be based solely on intention, and the actual human tendency to let the consequences of actions influence our sentiments of merit or demerit. Smith explains the cause, extent, and purpose of this irregularity of sentiment, which arises from the influence of fortune.

## Themes in this chapter

### Sympathy as the Foundation of Moral Judgment

The chapter explores how our moral sentiments are influenced by the actual consequences of actions, revealing an irregularity in sympathy that deviates from the abstract rule of judging solely by intention.

### Justice as the Pillar of Society vs. Beneficence as Ornament

The discussion of merit and demerit in relation to gratitude and resentment touches on the foundations of justice and beneficence, as fortune affects our sense of what is due to an agent.

## Key lines

> Whatever praise or blame can be due to any action, must belong either, first, to the intention or affection of the heart, from which it proceeds, or, secondly, to the external action or movement of the body, which this affection gives occasion to; or, lastly, to the good or bad consequences, which actually, and in fact, proceed from it.

Praise or blame for an action can only be based on three things: the intention behind it, the physical act itself, or the actual outcomes that result from it.

_Smith sets up the three possible foundations for moral judgment, which he will then argue reduce to intention alone._

> The only consequences for which he can be answerable, or by which he can deserve either approbation or disapprobation of any kind, are those which were some way or other intended, or those which, at least, show some agreeable or disagreeable quality in the intention of the heart, from which he acted.

A person can only be held morally responsible for consequences that were intended or that reveal something about their character and intentions.

_Smith emphasizes the primacy of intention over actual outcomes in moral evaluation._

> But how well soever we may seem to be persuaded of the truth of this equitable maxim, when we consider it after this manner, in abstract, yet when we come to particular cases, the actual consequences which happen to proceed from any action, have a very great effect upon our sentiments concerning its merit or demerit, and almost always either enhance or diminish our sense of both.

Even though we intellectually agree that only intention matters, in practice the actual outcomes of actions strongly influence our feelings of praise or blame, often making us feel more or less strongly than the intention alone would warrant.

_Smith identifies the central puzzle of the chapter: the gap between our abstract moral principles and our actual emotional responses._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_theory_of_moral_sentiments_se/chapters/section-iii-of-the-influence-of-fortune-upon-the-sentiments-of-mankind-with-regard-to-the-merit-or-demerit-of-their-actions
- 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