Moral Economies of Money

Jakob Feinig is Assistant Professor in the Department of Human Development, College of Community and Public Affairs, Binghamton University.

"In this book, Feinig sets out to make money visible as a practice. He does that with breath-taking effect. Brilliant, thought-provoking, and illuminating."—Christine Desan, Harvard University "An absorbingly rich history of the struggles over money in the United States from colonial 'moral economies' to its expropriation by capitalist banking."—Geoffrey Ingham, University of Cambridge "In this compelling fusion of sociological insight and historical narrative, Feinig succeeds in clarifying how money politics worked in the past, and why it should be revisited today."—Roy Kreitner, Tel Aviv University "Moral Economies of Money: Politics and the Monetary Constitution of Society, the outstanding new book by the sociologist Jakob Feinig, shows that it doesn't have to be this way: we need not settle for a monetary system that breeds apathy or withdrawal into conspiracy theory. To the contrary—for much of this country's history, the conspicuous entanglement of fiscal and monetary policy encouraged money users to participate in the design, implementation, and governance of systems for issuing and retiring currency."—Aaron Wistar, Jacobin "The sociologist Jakob Feinig challenges the dominant view of money as a scarce commodity. His masterful book Moral Economies of Money: Politics and the Monetary Constitution of Society demonstrates that money is an elastic public good."—Sandeep Vaheesan, UCLA Law Review "To politicize monetary policy is a controversial demand today; to politicize the design of the monetary system can sound positively outlandish. Jakob Feinig's Moral Economies of Money gives us an excellent place to start."—Pierre-Christian Fink, Phenomenal World "The clarity and concision of Moral Economies makes the enigmatic into something knowable, teachable, and politicizeable—the value of which will be immediately clear to those who, from classroom experience, know the phenomenon of monetary silence all too well."—Stephanie L. Mudge, Just Money "One of the hallmarks of good historical sociology is that it leads us to see the periods we think we know in a new light. [The Moral Economies of Money] does that in so many ways, both big and small."—Josh Pacewicz, Just Money "Feinig's book is a critical resource for thinking through such possibilities and expanding our understanding of real resources, theories of value, and the international hierarchy of money."—Benjamin Wilson, Journal of Economic Issues "Jakob Feinig's Moral Economies of Money is a refreshing and at the same time highly relevant, nuanced analysis of the moral, political and social dimensions of monetary design. You won't regret delving into it. ... [a] valuable resource for scientists, political decision-makers and everyone interested in the role of money in shaping our world [] beyond conspiracy theories and political phlegmatism."—Lea Steininger, Wirtschaft un Gesellschaft

• Introduction: Moral Economies of Money and Monetary Silencing1. Settler Democracy as a Monetary School: Toward Moral Economies of Money2. Moral Economies of Money3. Monetary Silencing and the Romance of Unmediated Exchanges4. Greenback Moral Economies5. What Kinds of People Should Money Users Be?6. Monetary Silencing as a New Deal LegacyConclusion: From New Deal Silencing to a Moral Economy of Money