This study is concerned with the time-honored problem of the change that is induced when money enters into the economy. As far back as Aristotle (Politics, pp. 1135-1143) the still-unanswered question regarding the dichotomy of the real-exchange and the monetary economy was raised. He contrasted Oeconomic, where people strive to obtain real utilities (household management), to Chrematistic, where they use money to make more money (art of wealth-acquisition): The true wealth consists of such values in use; for the quantity of possession of this kind, capable of making life pleasant, is not unlimited. There is, however, a second mode of acquiring things, to which we may by preference and with correctness give the name of Chrematistic, and in this case there appear to be no limits to riches and pos sessions. Trade does not in its nature belong to Chrematistic, for here the exchange has reference only to what is necessary to themselves. ( . . . ) In the case of Chrematistic, circulation is the source of riches. And it appears to revolve about money, for money is the beginning and end of this kind of exchange. Therefore also riches, such as Chre matistic strives for, are unlimited. ( . . . ) Oeconomic, not Chrematistic, has a limit ( . . . ;) the object of the former is something different from money, of the latter the augmenta tion of money ( . . .

Keywords

Authors and Affiliations

University of Augsburg, Augsburg, Germany

Dieter Suhr

Bibliographic Information

Book Title: The Capitalistic Cost-Benefit Structure of Money
Book Subtitle: An Analysis of Money’s Structural Nonneutrality and its Effects on the Economy
Authors: Dieter Suhr
Series Title: Studies in Contemporary Economics
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-74758-8
Publisher: Springer Berlin, Heidelberg
eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive
Copyright Information: Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 1989
Softcover ISBN: 978-3-540-51138-0Published: 10 May 1989
eBook ISBN: 978-3-642-74758-8Published: 06 December 2012
Series ISSN: 1431-8806
Edition Number: 1
Number of Pages: X, 136
Topics: Economics, general

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Authors:

Sections

Buy it now

Buying options

Other ways to access

Table of contents (14 chapters)

Front Matter

Second-Best Capitalism

Money’s Costs and Benefits

The Production and Destruction of Monetary Liquidity

Optimal Monetary Liquidity

Establishing Neutral Money

Back Matter

About this book