Sooner or later, we are told, humans realized how inefficient such a barter economy is and switched to using coins as a medium of exchange, and eventually to the fiat currency we use today (Wikipedia). Here, both farmers receive the goods immediately and the trade is presumed to be beneficial to both parties. Textbooks dating back to Adam Smith frequently give examples such as one farmer trading two pounds of wheat for another farmer’s pig. The typical narrative goes something like this: in early human civilization there was no money or other medium of exchange therefore, humans operated in a barter economy where people participated in immediate transactions of differing goods.

Whether in a high school class or a university lecture, our initial exposure to the broad field of economics usually begins with a brief recap of human economic history. Therefore, I would like to explore some particularly interesting topics and arguments that pose intriguing questions regarding our modern approach to understanding and operating the current economic system.įirst, let us return to our very first lessons in economics. The book, being known for birthing a plethora of commentaries and reviews, could not be exhaustively analyzed in a brief article. Passionate debates and lively discussions sprouted from its unapologetically sharp critique of modern economics, its impressively expansive review of human history, and its controversial suggestions about our current understanding of money, markets, economies, and society. When David Graeber’s book Debt: The First 5,000 Years hit the bookshelves in 2011, it was met with equally poignant praise and criticism.

Graeber debt book