The Guidance for Question Setters, published at the start of every MQL season, advises: "If the answer to a question is a year or number, always include some leeway unless it is reasonable to expect an exact answer."
Well ... this question does include "some leeway". But is two years either way really appropriate for something that happened nearly 250 years ago? That's a variation of less than 1% either way.
What the setter of this question seems to be saying, in effect, is that we should all know that The Wealth of Nations was published in the mid–1770s.
1776 also happens, of course, to be the year in which Britain's American colonies declared their independence. Was this just a coincidence, or should we be able to link these two events?
I googled "wealth of nations declaration independence". (Google helpfully suggested including the word 'similarities'). The first hit was this article on the website of the Foundation for Economic Education. It was written by one Dr. Clarence Carson, who "has written and taught extensively, specializing in American intellectual history."
Dr. Carson "had long known, of course, that [the Declaration of Independence and The Wealth of Nations] were both published in 1776", and "the thought was in [his] mind ... that there was something symbolic in the fact that these two great landmarks of liberty had come forth in the same year".
I must try and remember that in future. And of course, if we can remember that, there's no real need for even two years' leeway!
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