L1 - What Is And Is Not Cultural About Money Flashcards
What is Money?
To understand what money is, anthropologists perform Ethnography:
1) They study in another society (this cases Papua New Guinea).
2) They research examples of money’s use in different societies
3) They record explanations from others
They don’t define money rather use analogies for it.
For example: How does Ongka define money?
“Money is LIKE our pigs”
“Money is to the white man what pigs are too us”
“Money looks after the white man in the same way money looks after us”
Theorising by analogy
When defining money, anthropologists used analogies.
They come to these through analysis of their field notes.
They analyse field notes by reading widely what others have said. E.g. Aristotle believes their are 4 functions of money and can only be described in use.
They then make cross comparisons with other societies like in Ongka’s case where “pigs are like money” and this creates discussion.
The result in this example was they we turn our attention away from Aristotle’s notion of function to an anthropologists notion of purpose.
This theorising by analogy helps to see things in the wider context that we hadn’t already seen before.
Colonialism
A period where several Western European nations set out political and economic policies and strategies in order to extend their own economic interests in other places around the globe.
There is more than 4 functions of money
The research in Nigeria by 2 American anthropologists found that universally money has a general purpose - the 4 functions of money set out by Aristotle.
However they also found that money is a ‘cultural object’ and has particular purposes and some limits on its use. Money often obtained a moral dimension - “Pigs look after Ongka, like money looks after us”.
To the anthropologists the function is always social and has a purpose.
3 spheres of monetary exchange
Anthropologists were examining the different purposes of money asides from the 4 functions set out by Aristotle and found 3 spheres of exchange in the Tiv tribe.
1) First sphere of substance exchange uses barter to determine value =
Traditionally goods were traded in barter using cowrie shells.
2) Second sphere of prestige exchanges value
Prestige could be gained through exchange especially in exchanges of slaves, cattle, cloth and metal bars.
People could gain prestige in ceremonial market exchanges where e.g. Cows could exchanged for slaves.
3) Third shower of exchange was rights in women.
When women get married, brass rods are exchanged for them to show respect for the loss of a family member. They were concerned with buying women so as too transfer legal rights in the women.
Tiv marriage
A women is allocated a man from a clan.
Brass rods can be traded if the man is of ‘good reputation’.
Two ways of making the marriage happen:
Capturing a women from a married man (direct exchange)
Trading brass or cattle for a women (indirect exchange)
The marriage established many different kinds of rights in persons. The TIV uses the term ‘Kem marriage’ - where the rights are exchanged in marriage.
Moral economy
This was where men would try to convert wealth into a higher realm/sphere of exchange.
I.e. To ‘trade-up’
