Consider one or more of the following questions to reflect on at the end of Subtopic 6.1. Discuss with another student or in a small group, or record (written, audio, video) your response.
Explaining money simply
If a 5-year-old child asked you, “What is money?”, how would you explain it in the simplest way? Think back to Section 6.1.1 where money was described as part of a system with parts, relationships, and functions.
Why origin stories matter
Economics textbooks often tell a story that money developed from barter in markets, and only later governments got involved (markets-money-government). Historians and anthropologists argue instead that governments and communities created money first, and markets came later (governments-money-markets, Section 6.1.2). Why do you think the order of these two stories matters for how we see the role of governments, markets, and people’s relationships and the rules they create in organising the economy?
Looking inside ‘trust’
In Section 6.1.1, we read that money only works if people trust it. But trust can be a 'black box' word unless we look deeper. What do you think lies behind that trust. What relationships, rules, or institutions make trust in money possible?
The problem of the ‘eleventh round’
In Section 6.1.3, you read the story of the eleventh round. It showed how when money is created as loans with interest, people must repay more than the money that originally existed. What are some possible consequences of this kind of system for communities, competition, or cooperation?
The parable of circulating money
In Section 6.1.1, you read the parable of the circulating money where debts disappeared even though no new money was created. What does this story reveal about money as part of a system rather than just “a thing” we hold?
Designing money with values in mind
Section 1.3.2 asked you to think about the role of values in the economy. If your community created its own money system, like the Bangla-Pesa in Section 6.1.1, which values would you want it to reflect? How might those values shape the design and use of the money?