European University Institute Library

The philosophy of debt, Alexander Douglas

eng

Includes bibliographical references and index

index present

non fiction

The philosophy of debt

bibliography

1049534284

Alexander Douglas

I owe you a dinner invitation, you owe ten years on your mortgage, and the government owes billions. We speak confidently about these cases of debt, but is that concept clear in its meaning? This book aims to clarify the concept of debt so we can find better answers to important moral and political questions. This book seeks to accomplish two things. The first is to clarify the concept of debt by examining how the word is used in language. The second is to develop a general, principled account of how debts generate genuine obligations. This allows us to avoid settling each case by a bare appeal to moral intuitions, which is what we seem to currently do. It requires a close examination of many institutions, e.g. money, contract law, profit-driven finance, government fiscal operations, and central banking. To properly understand the moral and political nature of debt, we must understand how these institutions have worked, how they do work, and how they might be made to work. There have been many excellent anthropological and sociological studies of debt and its related institutions. Philosophy can contribute to the emerging discussion and help us to keep our language precise and to identify the implicit principles contained in our intuitions.--, Provided by Publisher

Language -- "Debt" as equivocal -- Debitum -- Debt and sin -- Debt vs. duty, I -- Debt vs. duty, II -- Owing and owning -- Creditum, I -- Creditum, II -- : history -- What is the institution of debt? -- Ancient usury -- Productive and extractive usury -- The defence of usury -- Forced debts -- The taming of debt -- Usury and abusury -- : money -- What is money? -- The trick behind money -- The origins of money -- Debunking the myth of barter -- Money as debt -- Chartalism and Fiat money -- Government ious and taxes -- Bank deposits and "inside money" -- Monetary operations and the dominance of bank IOUs -- Fixed and floating exchange rates section four : political economy -- The monetary theory of production -- Debt, trust, and production -- Debt deflation and accidental abusury -- Government deficits -- Inflation, I -- Inflation, II -- What any housewife knows -- Lazy thinking and a new proposal -- Notes and replies to objections -- A note on the "labour market" and immigration -- A note on the foreign trade balance -- A note on marxism and the falling rate of profit -- Conclusion