本书全名为《国民财富的性质和原因的研究》，初版于1776年，它的出版标志着经济学作为一门独立学科的诞生。该书将经济学、哲学、历史、政治理论和实践计划综合在一起，总结了近代初期各国资本主义发展的经验，对整个国民经济的运动过程做了系统的描述。该书是现代政治经济学研究的起点，被誉为西方经济学的“圣经”、“第一部系统的伟大的经济学著作”，一经发表马上被翻译成多种文字。时至今日，许多国家制定政策时仍以该书的基本观点作为依据。

\"INTRODUCTION AND PLAN OF THE WORK BOOK I Of the Causes of Improvement in the Productive Powers of Labour, and of the Order According to Which its Produce is Naturally Distributed among the Different Ranks of the People CHAPTER I OF THE DIVISION OF LABOUR CHAPTER II OF THE PRINCIPLE WHICH GIVES OCCASION TO THE DIVISION OF LABOUR CHAPTER III THAT THE DIVISION OF LABOUR IS LIMITED BY THE EXTENT OF THE MARKET CHAPTER IV OF THE ORIGIN AND USE OF MONEY CHAPTER V OF THE REAL AND NOMINAL PRICE OF COMMODITIES, OR OF THEIR PRICE IN LABOUR, AND THEIR PRICE IN MONEY CHAPTER VI OF THE COMPONENT PART OF THE PRICE OF COMMODITIES CHAPTER VII OF THE NATURAL AND MARKET PRICE OF COMMODITIES CHAPTER VIII OF THE WAGES OF LABOUR CHAPTER IX OF THE PROFITS OF STOCK CHAPTER X OF WAGES AND PROFIT IN THE DIFFERENT EMPLOYMENTS OF LABOUR AND STOCK PART I. Inequalities arising from the Nature of the Employments themselves.. PART II. Inequalities occasioned by the Policy of Europe CHAPTER XI OF THE RENT OF LAND PART I.Of the Produce of Land which always affords Rent PART II. Of the Produce of Land, which sometimes does, and sometimes does not afford Rent PART III. Ofthe variations in the Proportion between the respective Values of that sort of Produce which always affords Rent, and of that which sometimes does, and sometimes does not, afford Rent Digression concerning the Variations in the value of Silver during the Course of the Four last Centuries. First Period Second Period Third Period Variations in the Proportion between the respective Values of Gold and Silver Grounds of the suspicion that the Value of Silver still continues to decrease Different Effects of the Progress of Improvement upon three different sorts of rude Produce First Sort Second sort Third Sort Conclusion of the Digression concerning the Variations in the Value of Silver Effec\"