Georg Simmel: Quantitative Money

Meaning of Georg Simmel Money Quote: saying financial economy has an exactitude to economic life which can’t be applied to personal lives. Georg Simmel said:
 
 

 

“The calculative exactness of practical life which the money economy has brought about corresponds to the ideal of natural science: to transform the world by mathematical formulas. Only money economy has filled the days of so many people with weighing, calculating, with numerical determinations, with a reduction of qualitative values to quantitative ones” — Georg Simmel

In this quote, Georg Simmel is commenting on how the development of money-based economies has influenced modern life and ways of thinking. Some key points:

• He notes that practical, everyday life under a money economy requires “calculative exactness” and quantitative assessments like weighing and calculating that are similar to scientific methods.
• Money allows the world to be “transformed” or understood according to mathematical formulas and numerical values in a way analogous to natural science.
• Simmel suggests that monetary systems have filled people’s days with reducing qualitative aspects like worth, value or meaning to quantitative measurements like amounts of money.

Overall, the quote seems to posit that the rise of money economies has shaped a more analytical, quantitatively focused lens through which modern societies approach practical and commercial issues – a perspective aligned with scientific rationalism that emphasizes numeric metrics over intangible qualities. The influence of money is seen extending even into how people conceptualize and measure aspects of life, work and value itself.

Birthday: March 1, 1858 – Death: September 26, 1918

Georg Simmel: Money Stands Still

Georg Simmel Money Quote saying that if money is not moving, it doesn’t serve the purpose it was intended to serve. Georg Simmel said:
 

 

“When money stands still, it is no longer money according to its specific value and significance” — Georg Simmel

In this quote, Georg Simmel is making an observation about the nature and function of money. The best interpretation is:

• Simmel states that money loses its defining “value and significance” when it ceases circulating and instead sits idle or “stands still”.
• Money derives its worth and purpose from its ability to act as a fluid medium of exchange. Its value is in its movement between economic actors.
• If money is hoarded and not used to facilitate trade and the exchange of goods/services, it is no longer truly fulfilling its role as a currency according to Simmel.

Overall, Simmel appears to be suggesting that money’s essential characteristic is its liquidity and circulation within an economy. Immobilized funds are no longer effectively serving their role as a dynamic medium of exchange – they are just inert assets. Money must flow to maintain its monetary qualities from Simmel’s perspective.

Birthday: March 1, 1858 – Death: September 26, 1918

Georg Simmel: Money Vehicle Motion

Philosopher Georg Simmel Money Quotation saying, oh so philosophically, that capital has value only when in motion. Georg Simmel said:
 

 

“Money is nothing but the vehicle for a movement in which everything else that is not in motion is completely extinguished” — Georg Simmel

In this quote, sociologist Georg Simmel is characterizing the nature and role of money within economic systems. His view seems to be that money primarily serves as a medium that facilitates constant activity, transactions and circulation. Simmel implies that when money is actively moving through the exchange of goods and services, the economy functions smoothly.

However, if money were to cease flowing and come to a stop or be hoarded, economic activity would grind to a halt and other values would be “extinguished.” The quote conveys Simmel’s perspective that money is essentially a lubricant that allows continuous interaction and productivity between economic actors, and that a lack of monetary fluidity and flow would cripple commerce and production.

He sees money as a vehicle for sustaining perpetual economic motion rather than an end in itself.

Birthday: March 1, 1858 – Death: September 26, 1918