1. In modern social life, money is a comprehensive representative of wealth. Since it is a comprehensive representative, it can be simply logically deduced that having money means having wealth; accordingly, people's pursuit of money is also the pursuit of wealth; people's attitude towards money is also their attitude towards wealth. In fact, this simple logical inference is problematic, because money is only a "comprehensive representation" of wealth, not wealth itself - if you hold gold or dollars, they are not cars, houses, or clean air. , pure drinking water, does not equal spiritual joy, enrichment of life and freedom of thought. Although you can exchange for part of these real wealth using gold or US dollars. In other words, there is a close relationship between money and real wealth, but there is still a distance between the "comprehensive representative" of money and real wealth. What's more, a lot of wealth cannot be represented, measured, or exchanged with money.
It is precisely because of this relationship between money and real wealth that we should not equate money with wealth, nor should we simply equate the pursuit of money and possession of money with the realization of the value of life and the pursuit of happiness. stand up. Regarding money, we need a kind of wisdom in life.
Wealth is an all-encompassing and very broad concept. From the common understanding of people in modern social life, it includes not only material products that serve people's survival and life, but also non-material products such as people's psychological pleasure and spiritual satisfaction; it includes both "material products" that can be privatized to individuals or families. "Private wealth (such as family property)", and "private wealth" that is difficult to privatize (such as blue sky, white clouds, clean air); including things obtained directly from nature and things manufactured by man; in Man-made things include not only materialized tangible products, but also non-materialized cultural products such as systems, rules, habits, traditions, customs, etc., as well as pure ideas such as religions, beliefs, doctrines, ideologies, subjective value judgments, etc. existence. In a nutshell, wealth is the sum of everything that people pursue in real life and that individuals think is valuable. For individuals living in modern society, the pursuit of all kinds of wealth is the entire content and purpose of life. It just depends on how you determine the "wealth goal" in your mind - some people pursue the abundance of material products; some pursue spiritual satisfaction; some pursue the tranquility of the religious process; some pursue the tempering of faith practice. So many choices to pursue wealth goals make our world full of life and color.
Unfortunately, in the era of monetary economy, money has to a considerable extent monotonized people's pursuit of wealth diversification goals. Money seems to represent and measure the value of all wealth in the world, and seems to be exchangeable for all wealth in the world. People's pursuit and possession of it seems to be synonymous with the pursuit and possession of all wealth. In this way, the purpose of life, apart from the pursuit and possession of money, will no longer have anything else of value. There is no doubt that this is an illusion, but this illusion confuses the vast majority of people. Especially when money can be used to avoid labor and personal punishment, buy marriage, and compensate for life, money is directly related to the value of life. , the illusion that "money talks" is getting bigger and bigger.
Based on the understanding that money is a "comprehensive representative" of wealth but not wealth itself, and that money cannot completely measure, represent and exchange all wealth, our wisdom about money is: in real social life, We must pursue money not only to obtain the wealth it can represent (such as housing, cars, etc.), but also to pursue the wealth that money cannot represent (such as inner peace); we must have a certain amount of money, but we must not stop at it. Just in the situation of having money, you must also enjoy the real wealth itself that money can exchange for, that is, you must be able to spend money. Otherwise, we will just possess the form of money and wealth in vain and become an authentic "miser"; we must pursue money in a certain time and space, and we must give up the pursuit of money in a certain time and space to enjoy enough leisure in life. In such a wise life, money will always be your loyal servant, and you will win the rich content of life and the true realization of the value of life. In other words, you are surviving and living wisely.
Concerning money, money and life, money and society, many thinkers in history have shown strong pessimism. Marx fiercely criticized the "fetishism" of commodity currency and determined that under the conditions of commodity currency, especially in capitalist society where labor is transformed into commodities and currency is transformed into capital, this "fetishism" has an ineradicable attribute. Deeply enslaved or "alienated" human existence. Therefore, overthrowing the capitalist social system and abolishing the commodity currency system have become the basic prerequisites for the ideal construction of a better society in the future. Simmel, a German social thinker, believes that the reality that "money is the secular god" is sad because money is just an empty form, not wealth itself, and cannot represent all wealth. "Money is only the way to the end." It is a bridge of values, but people cannot live on the bridge." Unlike Marx, Simmel did not have an ideal design to abolish the monetary system. He just sighed helplessly in the face of reality, full of endless sadness.
We "unfortunately" live in a historical stage and society where money exists.
In the foreseeable future, we cannot abolish money at all, but is it necessary for us to succumb to money or indulge in pessimism about money? At least, I think it is not necessary. For individuals, if they can treat money wisely and only use it as a tool or means of life, rather than as the purpose of life, I am sure that this kind of life with real content will have a rich wealth structure. Life is a relatively successful and valuable life, although it is not and cannot be a perfect life.
2. There is a famous saying in the book "La Traviata": "Money is a good servant and a bad master." Whether to be the master of money or to be the slave of money reflects two different views on money. .
The outlook on money is the fundamental view and attitude towards money, which is closely connected with the outlook on life. Money was created to meet the needs of commodity exchange. With the high development of commodity economy, money has gradually become a symbol of wealth. The bourgeois view of money has two characteristics. One is "money first". They proceed from their own class and personal self-interest, put money in the supreme position, and focus on money in everything. As long as you can get money, you can do whatever it takes. The second is "money talks". They exaggerate the role of money, advocating that "money can make the world go round", "money determines everything" and "money is happiness".
Marxism scientifically reveals the essence and historical role of money. It believes that money, as material wealth, is created by human beings and serves human beings. Human beings should be the masters of money, not the slaves of money. People rely on their own labor to create wealth and acquire property. Money is glorious, but it is shameful to get something for nothing through exploitation, robbery and fraud. Money plays an important role in promoting the exchange of goods, but money is not everything. There are things in the world that are more important and valuable than money. Marie Curie gave up the huge sum of money from the "radium patent", resolutely announced the technology of refining radium to the world, and donated the world's first gram of radium worth 1 million francs to the research institute for cancer treatment. In 1950, the famous mathematician Hua Luogeng refused the lucrative offer of a tenured professor at the University of Illinois in the United States, crossed the stormy waves of the Pacific with his wife and children, and devoted himself to the construction of the motherland.
Money is a necessary condition for a happy life, but money does not equal happiness, because human beings cannot live without spiritual life. People who are rich in material life but empty in spiritual life will not have real happiness.