The Power of Money, an essay written by Karl Marx in 1844, beautifully illustrates the big influence of money in human society and in relationships between the individuals in the human society. Money, which was introduced as a medium of exchange of value, to replace the age old barter system. Barter system was based on people exchanging goods, commodities and services with each other that they perceived to be equal and square in value and utility. The barter system required both the parties to actually produce something that had utility and use for the other party. While, the system was good because it required each member of the society to produce something in order to acquire something else exchange for the produced good. There were times when the system was simply inadequate to determine the value of the commodities exchanged and to make sure that transaction was fair, simple and balanced for both the parties. Money was introduced to overcome this inadequacy of the barter system. A manufacturer, say a weaver could sell cloth for 'n' value and then take the money and buy commodities and goods for himself at 'n' value from another party. This way, the commodity could be sold for a price agreed between the two parties in exchange for a value represented by money, which in turn could be used by the seller to buy commodities and goods as per his needs. The transition from barter system to money based exchange value was a revolutionary step, as it gave freedom to both the buyer and seller to buy and sell things without being bothered to find someone who would exchange the goods for the goods they produced at an agreed value. One could buy yards of cloth and pay the weaver, who could then in turn buy more bales of cotton and silk, plus with extra money buy goods for his and his family's personal use. So far so good. Money played a very convenient role in economy as the medium of exchange and people were at last free to buy things they needed without having to bother to produce something that the seller might be interested in trading his goods with.
So, where did the money begin to change its characteristics and became a medium of influence in the society from its intended purpose of serving as a medium of exchange? The main reason that money went on to become a medium of influence is because of the inherent value associated with it. It has its own value. It can hold on to its value in total isolation and hence it has that innate property to buy everything. If a hungry, homeless man finds a bank currency note of Rs 100. He can instantly buy himself food, clothing and shelter if possible. The "value" equivalent to 100 rupees is intrinsic to that currency note. Karl Marx notes that "Money is the procurer between man’s need and the object, between his life and his means of life." It is because of this characteristic of money, it acquires godly, magical status. A possessor of money becomes respected because 'money' is respected. One who has money is considered worthy, because the "money" he has is considered worthy. A capitalist may not know a single thing about the machinery in his factory, he may not know anything about coding, application development or building/designing hardware but with money he can buy himself people who would work for him and let him appropriate profits. Money also creates "demand". If I want to study I need to have money to pay for my studies and if I do not have money, I have no real demand or desire to study. Such is the nature of money that it dictates whether an individual has a need or does not have a need by the mere virtue of its possession by an individual.
With inputs from Marxist.Org
