After understanding the concept of private property, we need to look into money. However, the more I think about it and ask the question "What is money actually?", the more confusing it becomes.
Yet, money is so deeply embedded in the fabric of modern existence that it appears almost a natural fact, a self-evident medium of exchange as elemental as language.
We use it to measure value, to store wealth, to facilitate trade, and to settle debts, rarely pausing to consider its profound strangeness.
Why should a piece of paper, a small metal disc, or a digital entry on a screen command the power to feed us, house us, and define our social status?
The origins of money are not merely an economic or historical curiosity.
They are a foundational inquiry into the nature of human society, trust, and value itself.
The story of money is both an account of pragmatic innovation and a profound meditation on abstraction, relationship, and power.
The conventional, and now largely disputed, origin story of money begins with the inefficiencies of barter.
This narrative, popularised by Adam Smith in "The Wealth of Nations" (1776), posits that in primitive societies, individuals directly exchanged goods and services.
A farmer with surplus grain would seek a blacksmith who needed food and had a spare tool to trade.
The obvious problem, dubbed the "double coincidence of wants," made such a system cumbersome. If the blacksmith had no need for grain on the day the farmer arrived, no trade could occur.
Money, according to this theory, emerged organically as a solution, a commonly desired intermediate commodity that would be widely accepted in future exchanges.
Over time, certain goods, thanks to their durability, portability, divisibility, and inherent value, became preferred monetary means.
Cattle, grain, shells, beads, and notably precious metals like gold and silver, became the first money, easing the friction of trade and catalyzing economic complexity.
While elegant and intuitive, this barter-to-money narrative has been heavily critiqued by anthropologists and historians.
The critique centres on a lack of empirical evidence. No anthropological study has discovered a society that relied primarily on a barter economy without some prior concept of money or credit.
Instead, what early societies appear to have utilised were elaborate systems of gift-giving and credit within closely-knit communities.
Economic life was governed by relationships and obligations, not instantaneous exchanges of goods.
If a villager received help building a house, the obligation was remembered to be repaid later with labour, goods, or favours, all within a web of mutual social debt.
A few characteristics of money have already become clear: reciprocity and trust. In the next lecture, we'll elaborate further on the philosophical questions about money.
Thank you for your attention... the floor is yours....
Main Sources:
MacMillan The Encyclopedia of Philosophy, 2nd edition
TABLE OF CONTENT -----------------------------------------------------------------
1 - 100 Philosophers 9 May 2009 Start of
2 - 25+ Women Philosophers 10 May 2009 this blog
3 - 25 Adventures in Thinking 10 May 2009
4 - Modern Theories of Ethics 29 Oct 2009
5 - The Ideal State 24 Febr 2010 / 234
6 - The Mystery of the Brain 3 Sept 2010 / 266
7 - The Utopia of the Free Market 16 Febr 2012 / 383
8. - The Aftermath of Neo-liberalism 5 Sept 2012 / 413
9. - The Art Not to Be an Egoist 6 Nov 2012 / 426
10 - Non-Western Philosophy 29 May 2013 / 477
11 - Why Science is Right 2 Sept 2014 / 534
12 - A Philosopher looks at Atheism 1 Jan 2015 / 557
13 - EVIL, a philosophical investigation 17 Apr 2015 / 580
14 - Existentialism and Free Will 2 Sept 2015 / 586
15 - Spinoza 2 Sept 2016 / 615
16 - The Meaning of Life 13 Febr 2017 / 637
17 - In Search of my Self 6 Sept 2017 / 670
18 - The 20th Century Revisited 3 Apr 2018 / 706
19 - The Pessimist 11 Jan 2020 / 819
20 - The Optimist 9 Febr 2020 / 824
21 - Awakening from a Neoliberal Dream 8 Oct 2020 / 872
22 - A World Full of Patterns 1 Apr 2021 / 912
23 - The Concept of Freedom 8 Jan 2022 / 965
24 - Materialism 7 Sept 2022 / 1011
25 - Historical Materialism 5 Oct 2023 / 1088
26 - The Bonobo and the Atheist 9 Jan 2024 / 1102
27 - Artificial Intelligence 9 Feb 2024 / 1108
28 - Why Am I Here 6 Sept 2024 / 1139
The Discussion
[13:15] .: Beertje :. (beertje.beaumont): thank you Herman
[13:16] herman Bergson: If you really think about it, then is money a weird thing....
[13:16] herman Bergson: It has no worth at all... and yet we trust it to have worth
[13:17] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): Another thing i can to think of used for trading was salt. We need it to survive and it was hard to harvest at the time, this is where we got the word salary - from the word salt
[13:17] herman Bergson: When you look at your bank account you "know" that you can exchange those numbers for real goods, a bike, a car, groceries.....
[13:18] herman Bergson: Yes salt was also one of the early valuta
[13:18] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): aha
[13:19] bergfrau Apfelbaum: Unfortunately, it's necessary. In my circle of friends, we once formed a swap group. it worked well for a while, until the parasites came along. They wanted a lot and had nothing to give....
[13:19] herman Bergson: Money has a high social value and impact....
[13:19] herman Bergson: oh....where came those parasites from?
[13:20] .: Beertje :. (beertje.beaumont): salt was important to keep the food through the winter
[13:20] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): yes that too, befoe refrigerators
[13:20] .: Beertje :. (beertje.beaumont): meat can be salted for a long time
[13:21] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): works by the principle of osmosis pulling the water out of cells like the ones in bacteria killing them
[13:21] .: Beertje :. (beertje.beaumont): yes true
[13:21] bergfrau Apfelbaum: One person was able to build a chair for me. In return, I glazed a window for him. Then people came along who wanted something and got it, but couldn't give anything back because they had no talent.
[13:21] herman Bergson: it is a way of storing wealth
[13:22] bergfrau Apfelbaum: money was not allowed
[13:22] herman Bergson: Another thing money does....creating inequality
[13:22] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): yes, this we clearly see today
[13:23] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): the rich want more and more while the rest starve
[13:23] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): greed is a big issue for sure
[13:23] .: Beertje :. (beertje.beaumont): it's all based on fear
[13:24] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): of what? Not having enough status?
[13:24] herman Bergson: We have all the ingredients ready now for economics.... private property in land and movable objects and money to trade in those things
[13:24] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): with should not be based on your wallet size in firs tplace
[13:25] herman Bergson: Yes, greed and fear are closely related.....
[13:25] herman Bergson: But also status and greed
[13:25] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): I say like my breakdance friend Mario Perez Amigo. Skillz B4 Status
[13:25] herman Bergson: fear refers to survival and status refers to power
[13:26] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): ah
[13:26] bergfrau Apfelbaum: mhm
[13:26] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): but u dont need billions of dollars to get food
[13:26] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): its just to put in a pile for them and say HAHA look how much i have u suckers!
[13:26] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): sort of
[13:27] herman Bergson: No, but you get power with it, Bejiita
[13:27] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): as long i have so I can survive im happy
[13:27] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): and buy a new gadget now and then
[13:27] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): then im satisfied
[13:27] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): but that's me, im not an authoritarian monster
[13:28] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): i have no interest in gaining power but that everyone should be happy
[13:29] bergfrau Apfelbaum: me too Bejiita
[13:29] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): that is why I have so hard visualizing these things, power greed ect because i have none of that in me at all
[13:30] herman Bergson: Yes...that could be the case....
[13:30] herman Bergson: It is not our world....
[13:30] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): I want company, love, happiness, progress and peace among other things
[13:30] herman Bergson: But once you live in such circles, it gets you.
[13:31] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): I guess it is the case, like with the Trump supporters
[13:31] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): all they know is hate for others
[13:31] bergfrau Apfelbaum: cash will be abolished soon.... they sre already talking about it
[13:31] herman Bergson: Like all those elected presidents who all of a sudden won't quit but stay in power
[13:31] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): a cult
[13:31] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): indeed
[13:32] herman Bergson: power corrupts the mind
[13:32] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): and ruining the lives for millions if not billions of people
[13:32] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): Russia, Norh Korea, China ect
[13:32] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): where the population live in a jail more or less ruled by one authoritarian monster
[13:32] herman Bergson: Well, this was an easy lecture today ㋡
[13:33] herman Bergson: not controversial...
[13:33] .: Beertje :. (beertje.beaumont): ツ
[13:33] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): it is the sad truth
[13:33] herman Bergson: So let's get ready for the next one....
[13:33] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): aah
[13:34] herman Bergson: Maybe there we might step on some toes :-)
[13:34] .: Beertje :. (beertje.beaumont): oh dear
[13:34] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): (prepares my steam roller)
[13:34] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): ㋡
[13:34] herman Bergson: So, thank you all again.... it is time for a nice weekend... ㋡
[13:34] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): if i dont need to rlll zones that day
[13:34] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): roll
[13:35] herman Bergson: Class dismissed...
[13:35] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): ㋡
[13:35] .: Beertje :. (beertje.beaumont): thank you Herman it was very interesting as usual:)
[13:35] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): es
[13:35] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): yes
[13:35] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): true
[13:35] bergfrau Apfelbaum: was interesting again! ty Herman and class
[13:35] herman Bergson: just the tip of an iceberg
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