Money
What is Political Economy?
1. Edition November 2019
189 Pages, Hardcover
Wiley & Sons Ltd
Short Description
Few economic phenomena provoke as much confusion as money. From the first measures of value and the physical coins that circulated at the dawn human civilization to the era of 'virtual' money transmitted through cyberspace, it is ubiquitous and hugely important, yet economists cannot even agree on what it is.
In this pithy, accessible book, Geoffrey Ingham cuts through this tangled web of debate to bring rare clarity. Ingham begins by examining the fundamental debate over the nature of money: is it fundamentally a natural, 'neutral' measure of pre-existing value produced by 'real' economic forces? Or is it a socially produced and politically manipulated force that creates new value? He proceeds to trace the import of these competing views for how we understand our contemporary monetary systems and their practical and policy-related implications, from their role in financial crises to proposals for reform.
Students of political economy, economic sociology and monetary economics will find this book an invaluable primer, as will general readers wishing to understand how money shapes their lives, from the cash in their pocket to the numbers on their computer screen.
Further versions
Few economic phenomena provoke as much confusion as money. From the first measures of value and the physical coins that circulated at the dawn human civilization to the era of 'virtual' money transmitted through cyberspace, it is ubiquitous and hugely important, yet economists cannot even agree on what it is.
In this pithy, accessible book, Geoffrey Ingham cuts through this tangled web of debate to bring rare clarity. Ingham begins by examining the fundamental debate over the nature of money: is it fundamentally a natural, 'neutral' measure of pre-existing value produced by 'real' economic forces? Or is it a socially produced and politically manipulated force that creates new value? He proceeds to trace the import of these competing views for how we understand our contemporary monetary systems and their practical and policy-related implications, from their role in financial crises to proposals for reform.
Students of political economy, economic sociology and monetary economics will find this book an invaluable primer, as will general readers wishing to understand how money shapes their lives, from the cash in their pocket to the numbers on their computer screen.
1 Money's Puzzles
2 The 'incompatibles'
3 A social theory of money and monetary systems
Part II Capitalism and Money
4 The evolution of capitalist money
5 Modern money (i): states, central banks, and their banking system
6 Modern money (ii): 'near' money; 'complementary', 'alternative'; 'surrogate' money; and 'crypto currency'
7 The Great Financial Crisis and the Question of Money
8 Some conclusions
Sheila Dow, University of Stirling
'This is a brilliantly clear and succinct survey. Ingham provides a crisp and critical account of the major theories of money, together with a sharp analysis of contemporary forms of money such as Bitcoin and other alternative moneys. For anyone searching for a reliable and accessible way into the extraordinarily complex phenomenon of money, this book is a must-read.'
Nigel Dodd, London School of Economics and Political Science
