It begins with a verse fable of a thriving hive that ruins itself by turning honest, then defends the moral at length in prose remarks, an attack on charity schools and an inquiry into the origin of moral virtue. The second part pursues the argument in dialogues between the sceptical Cleomenes and the genteel Horatio.
Scandalous in its day, it shaped later debate on self-interest and economics, from Hume to Adam Smith. Download the free EPUB.