---
entity_slug: commercial_or_mercantile_system
evaluator: null
evaluated_at: '2026-02-23T04:58:54.728636'
overall_score: 4.6
scores:
- name: definition_precision
  value: 5.0
  max_value: 5.0
  rationale: 'The definition is highly precise and non-circular, clearly distinguishing
    the mercantile system''s core tenets: equating wealth with precious metals, zero-sum
    view of trade, and specific policy prescriptions for maximizing bullion inflow.
    It captures a distinct economic doctrine rather than a vague concept.'
- name: source_grounding
  value: 5.0
  max_value: 5.0
  rationale: This entity is directly grounded in Smith's text, as Book IV Chapter
    1 explicitly introduces and critiques the "commercial or mercantile system" and
    its identification of wealth with money/precious metals. The definition accurately
    reflects Smith's characterization of this dominant economic ideology of his era.
- name: domain_placement
  value: 4.0
  max_value: 5.0
  rationale: The "Regulation" domain is appropriate since the mercantile system fundamentally
    concerns trade policies and regulatory frameworks. However, it could arguably
    also belong in a "Theory" or "Economic Doctrine" domain since it represents a
    comprehensive worldview about how economies function.
- name: vsm_relevance
  value: 4.0
  max_value: 5.0
  rationale: This entity maps well to S4 (intelligence/environmental adaptation) as
    it represents a nation's strategic approach to international economic competition
    and environmental scanning for trade advantages. It also touches S5 (identity/policy)
    as it defines national economic identity and overarching policy direction.
- name: explanatory_value
  value: 5.0
  max_value: 5.0
  rationale: "This entity provides exceptional explanatory power by illuminating the\
    \ fundamental mechanism underlying 18th-century economic policy\u2014the belief\
    \ that wealth accumulation is zero-sum and metal-based. It explains the structural\
    \ logic behind mercantilist trade restrictions and export promotion that Smith\
    \ critiques throughout Book IV."
---

# Evaluation: Commercial Or Mercantile System

## definition_precision — 5.0 / 5.0

The definition is highly precise and non-circular, clearly distinguishing the mercantile system's core tenets: equating wealth with precious metals, zero-sum view of trade, and specific policy prescriptions for maximizing bullion inflow. It captures a distinct economic doctrine rather than a vague concept.

## source_grounding — 5.0 / 5.0

This entity is directly grounded in Smith's text, as Book IV Chapter 1 explicitly introduces and critiques the "commercial or mercantile system" and its identification of wealth with money/precious metals. The definition accurately reflects Smith's characterization of this dominant economic ideology of his era.

## domain_placement — 4.0 / 5.0

The "Regulation" domain is appropriate since the mercantile system fundamentally concerns trade policies and regulatory frameworks. However, it could arguably also belong in a "Theory" or "Economic Doctrine" domain since it represents a comprehensive worldview about how economies function.

## vsm_relevance — 4.0 / 5.0

This entity maps well to S4 (intelligence/environmental adaptation) as it represents a nation's strategic approach to international economic competition and environmental scanning for trade advantages. It also touches S5 (identity/policy) as it defines national economic identity and overarching policy direction.

## explanatory_value — 5.0 / 5.0

This entity provides exceptional explanatory power by illuminating the fundamental mechanism underlying 18th-century economic policy—the belief that wealth accumulation is zero-sum and metal-based. It explains the structural logic behind mercantilist trade restrictions and export promotion that Smith critiques throughout Book IV.
