Informazioni su questo prodotto

Product Identifiers

PublisherMelville House Publishing

ISBN-101612191290

ISBN-139781612191294

eBay Product ID (ePID)110652335

Product Key Features

Book TitleDebt : the First 5000 Years

Number of Pages534 Pages

LanguageEnglish

TopicEconomic History, Finance / General, Social History, Economics / Theory, Money & Monetary Policy

Publication Year2012

IllustratorYes

GenreBusiness & Economics, History

AuthorDavid Graeber

FormatTrade Paperback

Dimensions

Item Height1.5 in

Item Weight18.8 Oz

Item Length8.4 in

Item Width5.6 in

Additional Product Features

Intended AudienceTrade

Dewey Edition23

ReviewsWinner of the Bateson Book Prize awarded by the Society for Cultural Anthropology "One of the year's most influential books. Graeber situates the emergence of credit within the rise of class society, the destruction of societies based on 'webs of mutual commitment' and the constantly implied threat of physical violence that lies behind all social relations based on money." -Paul Mason, The Guardian "The book is more readable and entertaining than I can indicate... It is a meditation on debt, tribute, gifts, religion and the false history of money. Graeber is a scholarly researcher, an activist and a public intellectual. His field is the whole history of social and economic transactions." - Peter Carey , The Observer "An alternate history of the rise of money and markets, a sprawling, erudite, provocative work." - Drake Bennett, Bloomberg Businessweek "[A]n engaging book. Part anthropological history and part provocative political argument, it's a useful corrective to what passes for contemporary conversation about debt and the economy." - Jesse Singal, Boston Globe "Fresh... fascinating... Graeber's book is not just thought-provoking, but also exceedingly timely." - Gillian Tett, Financial Times (London) "Terrific... In the best anthropological tradition, he helps us reset our everyday ideas by exploring history and other civilizations, then boomeranging back to render our own world strange, and more open to change." - Raj Patel, The Globe and Mail "Graeber's book has forced me to completely reevaluate my position on human economics, its history, and its branches of thought. A Marxism without Graeber's anthropology is beginning to feel meaningless to me." - Charles Mudede, The Stranger "The world of borrowing needs a little demystification, and David Graeber's Debt is a good start." - The L Magazine "Controversial and thought-provoking, an excellent book." - Booklist "This timely and accessible book would appeal to any reader interested in the past and present culture surrounding debt, as well as broad-minded economists." - Library Journal Praise for David Graeber "I consider him the best anthropological theorist of his generation from anywhere in the world." -Maurice Bloch, Professor of Anthropology at the London School of Economics "A brilliant, deeply original political thinker." - Rebecca Solnit, author of A Paradise Built in Hell "If anthropology consists of making the apparently wild thought of others logically compelling in their own cultural settings and intellectually revealing of the human condition, then David Graeber is the consummate anthropologist. Not only does he accomplish this profound feat, he redoubles it by the critical task-now more urgent than ever-of making the possibilities of other people's worlds the basis for understanding our own." -Marshall Sahlins, Charles F. Grey Distinguished Service Professor Emeritus of Anthropology and of Social Sciences at the University of Chicago From the Hardcover edition., Winner of the Bateson Book Prize awarded by the Society for Cultural Anthropology "One of the year's most influential books. Graeber situates the emergence of credit within the rise of class society, the destruction of societies based on 'webs of mutual commitment' and the constantly implied threat of physical violence that lies behind all social relations based on money." --Paul Mason, The Guardian "The book is more readable and entertaining than I can indicate... It is a meditation on debt, tribute, gifts, religion and the false history of money. Graeber is a scholarly researcher, an activist and a public intellectual. His field is the whole history of social and economic transactions." -- Peter Carey , The Observer "An alternate history of the rise of money and markets, a sprawling, erudite, provocative work." -- Drake Bennett, Bloomberg Businessweek "[A]n engaging book. Part anthropological history and part provocative political argument, it's a useful corrective to what passes for contemporary conversation about debt and the economy." -- Jesse Singal, Boston Globe "Fresh... fascinating... Graeber's book is not just thought-provoking, but also exceedingly timely." -- Gillian Tett, Financial Times (London) "Terrific... In the best anthropological tradition, he helps us reset our everyday ideas by exploring history and other civilizations, then boomeranging back to render our own world strange, and more open to change." -- Raj Patel, The Globe and Mail "Graeber's book has forced me to completely reevaluate my position on human economics, its history, and its branches of thought. A Marxism without Graeber's anthropology is beginning to feel meaningless to me." -- Charles Mudede, The Stranger "The world of borrowing needs a little demystification, and David Graeber's Debt is a good start." -- The L Magazine "Controversial and thought-provoking, an excellent book." -- Booklist "This timely and accessible book would appeal to any reader interested in the past and present culture surrounding debt, as well as broad-minded economists." -- Library Journal Praise for David Graeber "I consider him the best anthropological theorist of his generation from anywhere in the world." --Maurice Bloch, Professor of Anthropology at the London School of Economics "A brilliant, deeply original political thinker." -- Rebecca Solnit, author of A Paradise Built in Hell "If anthropology consists of making the apparently wild thought of others logically compelling in their own cultural settings and intellectually revealing of the human condition, then David Graeber is the consummate anthropologist. Not only does he accomplish this profound feat, he redoubles it by the critical task--now more urgent than ever--of making the possibilities of other people's worlds the basis for understanding our own." --Marshall Sahlins, Charles F. Grey Distinguished Service Professor Emeritus of Anthropology and of Social Sciences at the University of Chicago, - Winner of the Bateson Book Prize awarded by the Society for Cultural Anthropology "One of the year's most influential books. Graeber situates the emergence of credit within the rise of class society, the destruction of societies based on 'webs of mutual commitment' and the constantly implied threat of physical violence that lies behind all social relations based on money." -Paul Mason, The Guardian "The book is more readable and entertaining than I can indicate... It is a meditation on debt, tribute, gifts, religion and the false history of money. Graeber is a scholarly researcher, an activist and a public intellectual. His field is the whole history of social and economic transactions." - Peter Carey , The Observer "An alternate history of the rise of money and markets, a sprawling, erudite, provocative work." - Drake Bennett, Bloomberg Businessweek "[A]n engaging book. Part anthropological history and part provocative political argument, it's a useful corrective to what passes for contemporary conversation about debt and the economy." - Jesse Singal, Boston Globe "Fresh... fascinating... Graeber's book is not just thought-provoking, but also exceedingly timely." - Gillian Tett, Financial Times (London) "Terrific... In the best anthropological tradition, he helps us reset our everyday ideas by exploring history and other civilizations, then boomeranging back to render our own world strange, and more open to change." - Raj Patel, The Globe and Mail "Graeber's book has forced me to completely reevaluate my position on human economics, its history, and its branches of thought. A Marxism without Graeber's anthropology is beginning to feel meaningless to me." - Charles Mudede, The Stranger "The world of borrowing needs a little demystification, and David Graeber's Debt is a good start." - The L Magazine "Controversial and thought-provoking, an excellent book." - Booklist "This timely and accessible book would appeal to any reader interested in the past and present culture surrounding debt, as well as broad-minded economists." - Library Journal Praise for David Graeber "I consider him the best anthropological theorist of his generation from anywhere in the world." -Maurice Bloch, Professor of Anthropology at the London School of Economics "A brilliant, deeply original political thinker." - Rebecca Solnit, author of A Paradise Built in Hell "If anthropology consists of making the apparently wild thought of others logically compelling in their own cultural settings and intellectually revealing of the human condition, then David Graeber is the consummate anthropologist. Not only does he accomplish this profound feat, he redoubles it by the critical task-now more urgent than ever-of making the possibilities of other people's worlds the basis for understanding our own." -Marshall Sahlins, Charles F. Grey Distinguished Service Professor Emeritus of Anthropology and of Social Sciences at the University of Chicago From the Hardcover edition., "[A]n engaging book. Part anthropological history and part provocative political argument, it's a useful corrective to what passes for contemporary conversation about debt and the economy." - Jesse Singal, Boston Globe "Graeber's book has forced me to completely reevaluate my position on human economics, its history, and its branches of thought. A Marxism without Graeber's anthropology is beginning to feel meaningless to me." - Charles Mudede, The Stranger "The world of borrowing needs a little demystification, and David Graeber's Debt is a good start." - The L Magazine "Controversial and thought-provoking, an excellent book." - Booklist "This timely and accessible book would appeal to any reader interested in the past and present culture surrounding debt, as well as broad-minded economists." - Library Journal Praise for David Graeber "I consider him the best anthropological theorist of his generation from anywhere in the world." -Maurice Bloch, Professor of Anthropology at the London School of Economics "A brilliant, deeply original political thinker." - Rebecca Solnit, author of A Paradise Built in Hell "A scholar whose books and articles are used in college classrooms around the world and an anarchist who is a card-carrying member of the Industrial Workers of the World." -The New York Times "He's a public intellectual. He speaks out. He participates. He's not someone who simply does good scholarship; he's an activist and a controversial person." -Stanley Aronowitz, Distinguished Professor of Sociology and Urban Education at the Graduate Center of the City University of New York "If anthropology consists of making the apparently wild thought of others logically compelling in their own cultural settings and intellectually revealing of the human condition, then David Graeber is the consummate anthropologist. Not only does he accomplish this profound feat, he redoubles it by the critical task-now more urgent than ever-of making the possibilities of other people's worlds the basis for understanding our own." -Marshall Sahlins, Charles F. Grey Distinguished Service Professor Emeritus of Anthropology and of Social Sciences at the University of Chicago, "An alternate history of the rise of money and markets, a sprawling, erudite, provocative work." - Drake Bennett, Bloomberg Businessweek "[A]n engaging book. Part anthropological history and part provocative political argument, it's a useful corrective to what passes for contemporary conversation about debt and the economy." - Jesse Singal, Boston Globe "Fresh... fascinating... Graeber's book is not just thought-provoking, but also exceedingly timely." - Gillian Tett, Financial Times (London) "Terrific... In the best anthropological tradition, he helps us reset our everyday ideas by exploring history and other civilizations, then boomeranging back to render our own world strange, and more open to change." - Raj Patel, The Globe and Mail "Graeber's book has forced me to completely reevaluate my position on human economics, its history, and its branches of thought. A Marxism without Graeber's anthropology is beginning to feel meaningless to me." - Charles Mudede, The Stranger "The world of borrowing needs a little demystification, and David Graeber's Debt is a good start." - The L Magazine "Controversial and thought-provoking, an excellent book." - Booklist "This timely and accessible book would appeal to any reader interested in the past and present culture surrounding debt, as well as broad-minded economists." - Library Journal Praise for David Graeber "I consider him the best anthropological theorist of his generation from anywhere in the world." -Maurice Bloch, Professor of Anthropology at the London School of Economics "A brilliant, deeply original political thinker." - Rebecca Solnit, author of A Paradise Built in Hell "If anthropology consists of making the apparently wild thought of others logically compelling in their own cultural settings and intellectually revealing of the human condition, then David Graeber is the consummate anthropologist. Not only does he accomplish this profound feat, he redoubles it by the critical task-now more urgent than ever-of making the possibilities of other people's worlds the basis for understanding our own." -Marshall Sahlins, Charles F. Grey Distinguished Service Professor Emeritus of Anthropology and of Social Sciences at the University of Chicago From the Hardcover edition., "One of the year's most influential books. Graeber situates the emergence of credit within the rise of class society, the destruction of societies based on 'webs of mutual commitment' and the constantly implied threat of physical violence that lies behind all social relations based on money." -Paul Mason, The Guardian "The book is more readable and entertaining than I can indicate... It is a meditation on debt, tribute, gifts, religion and the false history of money. Graeber is a scholarly researcher, an activist and a public intellectual. His field is the whole history of social and economic transactions." - Peter Carey , The Observer "An alternate history of the rise of money and markets, a sprawling, erudite, provocative work." - Drake Bennett, Bloomberg Businessweek "[A]n engaging book. Part anthropological history and part provocative political argument, it's a useful corrective to what passes for contemporary conversation about debt and the economy." - Jesse Singal, Boston Globe "Fresh... fascinating... Graeber's book is not just thought-provoking, but also exceedingly timely." - Gillian Tett, Financial Times (London) "Terrific... In the best anthropological tradition, he helps us reset our everyday ideas by exploring history and other civilizations, then boomeranging back to render our own world strange, and more open to change." - Raj Patel, The Globe and Mail "Graeber's book has forced me to completely reevaluate my position on human economics, its history, and its branches of thought. A Marxism without Graeber's anthropology is beginning to feel meaningless to me." - Charles Mudede, The Stranger "The world of borrowing needs a little demystification, and David Graeber's Debt is a good start." - The L Magazine "Controversial and thought-provoking, an excellent book." - Booklist "This timely and accessible book would appeal to any reader interested in the past and present culture surrounding debt, as well as broad-minded economists." - Library Journal Praise for David Graeber "I consider him the best anthropological theorist of his generation from anywhere in the world." -Maurice Bloch, Professor of Anthropology at the London School of Economics "A brilliant, deeply original political thinker." - Rebecca Solnit, author of A Paradise Built in Hell "If anthropology consists of making the apparently wild thought of others logically compelling in their own cultural settings and intellectually revealing of the human condition, then David Graeber is the consummate anthropologist. Not only does he accomplish this profound feat, he redoubles it by the critical task-now more urgent than ever-of making the possibilities of other people's worlds the basis for understanding our own." -Marshall Sahlins, Charles F. Grey Distinguished Service Professor Emeritus of Anthropology and of Social Sciences at the University of Chicago From the Hardcover edition., Winner of the Bateson Book Prize awarded by the Society for Cultural Anthropology "One of the year's most influential books. Graeber situates the emergence of credit within the rise of class society, the destruction of societies based on 'webs of mutual commitment' and the constantly implied threat of physical violence that lies behind all social relations based on money." --Paul Mason, The Guardian "The book is more readable and entertaining than I can indicate... It is a meditation on debt, tribute, gifts, religion and the false history of money. Graeber is a scholarly researcher, an activist and a public intellectual. His field is the whole history of social and economic transactions." -- Peter Carey , The Observer "An alternate history of the rise of money and markets, a sprawling, erudite, provocative work." -- Drake Bennett, Bloomberg Businessweek "[A]n engaging book. Part anthropological history and part provocative political argument, it's a useful corrective to what passes for contemporary conversation about debt and the economy." -- Jesse Singal, Boston Globe "Fresh... fascinating... Graeber's book is not just thought-provoking, but also exceedingly timely." -- Gillian Tett, Financial Times (London) "Terrific... In the best anthropological tradition, he helps us reset our everyday ideas by exploring history and other civilizations, then boomeranging back to render our own world strange, and more open to change." -- Raj Patel, The Globe and Mail "Graeber's book has forced me to completely reevaluate my position on human economics, its history, and its branches of thought. A Marxism without Graeber's anthropology is beginning to feel meaningless to me." -- Charles Mudede, The Stranger "The world of borrowing needs a little demystification, and David Graeber's Debt is a good start." -- The L Magazine "Controversial and thought-provoking, an excellent book." -- Booklist "This timely and accessible book would appeal to any reader interested in the past and present culture surrounding debt, as well as broad-minded economists." -- Library Journal Praise for David Graeber "I consider him the best anthropological theorist of his generation from anywhere in the world." --Maurice Bloch, Professor of Anthropology at the London School of Economics "A brilliant, deeply original political thinker." -- Rebecca Solnit, author of A Paradise Built in Hell "If anthropology consists of making the apparently wild thought of others logically compelling in their own cultural settings and intellectually revealing of the human condition, then David Graeber is the consummate anthropologist. Not only does he accomplish this profound feat, he redoubles it by the critical task--now more urgent than ever--of making the possibilities of other people's worlds the basis for understanding our own." --Marshall Sahlins, Charles F. Grey Distinguished Service Professor Emeritus of Anthropology and of Social Sciences at the University of Chicago From the Hardcover edition., "[A]n engaging book. Part anthropological history and part provocative political argument, it's a useful corrective to what passes for contemporary conversation about debt and the economy." - Jesse Singal, Boston Globe "Graeber's book is not just thought-provoking, but also exceedingly timely." -Financial Times (London) "Graeber's book has forced me to completely reevaluate my position on human economics, its history, and its branches of thought. A Marxism without Graeber's anthropology is beginning to feel meaningless to me." - Charles Mudede, The Stranger "The world of borrowing needs a little demystification, and David Graeber's Debt is a good start." - The L Magazine "Controversial and thought-provoking, an excellent book." - Booklist "This timely and accessible book would appeal to any reader interested in the past and present culture surrounding debt, as well as broad-minded economists." - Library Journal Praise for David Graeber "I consider him the best anthropological theorist of his generation from anywhere in the world." -Maurice Bloch, Professor of Anthropology at the London School of Economics "A brilliant, deeply original political thinker." - Rebecca Solnit, author of A Paradise Built in Hell "A scholar whose books and articles are used in college classrooms around the world and an anarchist who is a card-carrying member of the Industrial Workers of the World." -The New York Times "He's a public intellectual. He speaks out. He participates. He's not someone who simply does good scholarship; he's an activist and a controversial person." -Stanley Aronowitz, Distinguished Professor of Sociology and Urban Education at the Graduate Center of the City University of New York "If anthropology consists of making the apparently wild thought of others logically compelling in their own cultural settings and intellectually revealing of the human condition, then David Graeber is the consummate anthropologist. Not only does he accomplish this profound feat, he redoubles it by the critical task-now more urgent than ever-of making the possibilities of other people's worlds the basis for understanding our own." -Marshall Sahlins, Charles F. Grey Distinguished Service Professor Emeritus of Anthropology and of Social Sciences at the University of Chicago From the Hardcover edition., Winner of the Bateson Book Prize awarded by the Society for Cultural Anthropology "One of the year's most influential books. Graeber situates the emergence of credit within the rise of class society, the destruction of societies based on 'webs of mutual commitment' and the constantly implied threat of physical violence that lies behind all social relations based on money." --Paul Mason, The Guardian "The book is more readable and entertaining than I can indicate... It is a meditation on debt, tribute, gifts, religion and the false history of money. Graeber is a scholarly researcher, an activist and a public intellectual. His field is the whole history of social and economic transactions." -- Peter Carey , The Observer "An alternate history of the rise of money and markets, a sprawling, erudite, provocative work." -- Drake Bennett, Bloomberg Businessweek "[A]n engaging book. Part anthropological history and part provocative political argument, it's a useful corrective to what passes for contemporary conversation about debt and the economy." -- Jesse Singal, Boston Globe "Fresh... fascinating... Graeber's book is not just thought-provoking, but also exceedingly timely." -- Gillian Tett, Financial Times (London) "Remarkable." -- Giles Fraser, BBC Radio 4 "Terrific... In the best anthropological tradition, he helps us reset our everyday ideas by exploring history and other civilizations, then boomeranging back to render our own world strange, and more open to change." -- Raj Patel, The Globe and Mail "An amazing debut - conversational, pugnacious, propulsive" -- Times Higher Education (UK) "Graeber's book has forced me to completely reevaluate my position on human economics, its history, and its branches of thought. A Marxism without Graeber's anthropology is beginning to feel meaningless to me." -- Charles Mudede, The Stranger "The world of borrowing needs a little demystification, and David Graeber's Debt is a good start." -- The L Magazine "Controversial and thought-provoking, an excellent book." -- Booklist "This timely and accessible book would appeal to any reader interested in the past and present culture surrounding debt, as well as broad-minded economists." -- Library Journal Praise for David Graeber "I consider him the best anthropological theorist of his generation from anywhere in the world." --Maurice Bloch, Professor of Anthropology at the London School of Economics "A brilliant, deeply original political thinker." -- Rebecca Solnit, author of A Paradise Built in Hell "If anthropology consists of making the apparently wild thought of others logically compelling in their own cultural settings and intellectually revealing of the human condition, then David Graeber is the consummate anthropologist. Not only does he accomplish this profound feat, he redoubles it by the critical task--now more urgent than ever--of making the possibilities of other people's worlds the basis for understanding our own." --Marshall Sahlins, Charles F. Grey Distinguished Service Professor Emeritus of Anthropology and of Social Sciences at the University of Chicago From the Hardcover edition.

Dewey Decimal332

SynopsisEconomic history states that money replaced a bartering system, yet there isn't any evidence to support this axiom. Anthropologist Graeber presents a stunning reversal of this conventional wisdom. For more than 5000 years, humans have used elaborate credit systems to buy and sell goods. Since the beginning of the agrarian empires, humans have been divided into debtors and creditors. Through time, virtual credit money was replaced by gold and the system as a whole went into decline. This fascinating history is told for the first time., A fascinating chronicle of economic history which reverses conventional wisdom showing how debt existed long before money., Now in paperback: 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.

LC Classification NumberHG231