# Masters — The Wealth of Nations character guide

> Masters in The Wealth of Nations by Adam Smith.

**Role:** supporting

**Also known as:** Masters, their, masters

**First appearance:** 0011-viii-of-the-wages-of-labour

## Snapshot

Employers who command labour and capital, shaping wages and working conditions through the quiet leverage of ownership rather than open force.

## Who they are

Masters appear throughout Smith's examples as the party who sets terms, advances stock, and decides when to employ. Their interests rarely align neatly with those of their workers, and Smith treats that friction as ordinary rather than scandalous. Understanding their incentives is essential to the book's middle arc, where prices, profits, and the division of labour all hinge on what masters choose to do.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_wealth_of_nations_se/characters/masters
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_wealth_of_nations_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_wealth_of_nations_se/characters