ENGL 200 D: Reading Literature: Literature in the Marketplace

I am planning on using Adam Smith’s Wealth of Nations, Defoe’s On Credit and Trade, and possibly Stein’s Money to answer the question “What makes money challenging to use”. The form money takes is agreed upon by those in power and if they change it then the money you have today can be useless tomorrow.

From Adam Smith’s Wealth of Nations, chapter IV and V,  I want to utilize the many forms that money takes on through time to show how money can get complicated to the point that it becomes hard to use. It is rich with information on value and form and how money came to exist. Also there is a good example of how people used to procure their goods by selling their cattle or sheep that I would like to point into y paper to support my answer. I want to get through how difficult categorizing money is.

Defoe’s On Credit provides insight on how money can be substituted while Defoe’s On Trade provides an example of bartering. Credit is another form of money that we use today and how it can be used as a substitute for money will be important. Defoe’s On Trade is to provide support to how objects you trade is a sort of medium of exchange like money. Money is not limited to paper or coins and that is why money is hard to use.

My main point is that money is only a medium of exchange; it comes in many forms and changes with the times. This instability in form makes it a challenge for people to use.