內容簡介
每一本經濟的教科書都會說，金錢是為了代替原有在市場上以物易物方式的各種物品而發明的，它以統一貨幣的形式改善了原有的複雜交易模式。這個模式會產生什麼問題，到目前為止仍無證據支持。
本書作者David Graeber為一人類學家，他在本書中揭露了古老智慧的驚人之處，他指出早在五千年前，在農業社會開始之際，人類即有信用交易的觀念來買賣貨物-比任何錢幣和紙鈔都還要早。他也指出，在當今社會人們被分為債權方和債務方，而有關債務和債務豁免的議題自古以來激起無數輿論，凡牽涉古代法律和信仰的字詞如guilt, sin和redemption，均起源於古老的債務討論，這些和我們今日有關對錯的觀念相關甚鉅，也不斷的隨著時代演進、經濟情況和人類社會的改變而有所變化！
Now in paperback, the updated and expanded edition: David Graeber’s “fresh . . . fascinating . . . thought-provoking . . . and exceedingly timely” (Financial Times) history of debt
Here anthropologist David Graeber presents a stunning reversal of conventional wisdom: he shows that before there was money, there was debt. For more than 5,000 years, since the beginnings of the first agrarian empires, humans have used elaborate credit systems to buy and sell goods—that is, long before the invention of coins or cash. It is in this era, Graeber argues, that we also first encounter a society divided into debtors and creditors.
Graeber shows that arguments about debt and debt forgiveness have been at the center of political debates from Italy to China, as well as sparking innumerable insurrections. He also brilliantly demonstrates that the language of the ancient works of law and religion (words like “guilt,” “sin,” and “redemption”) derive in large part from ancient debates about debt, and shape even our most basic ideas of right and wrong. We are still fighting these battles today without knowing it.