Question

Think a life without market and currency. write a story keeping yourself as a main character,what problems will you face and how you will solve the same?

Answer 1

Well, this is how things still happen in villages in India.  Well, the problems with barter trade is that of "double coincidence" that is I need to have what you want and you need to have what I want. Only then will trade happen. And this makes exchange very difficult. There are other problems as well. How do you save? Money is a good store of value (provided that a nation does not high inflation). Money is a good measure of value. IN barter trade the price of everything has to be set for everything else. How many oranges per apples? How many oranges per mangoes? How many oranges per pencils? etc.  Also, people who sell bulky goods it will be a nightmare for them to sell their goods. Imagine someone rearing pigs who wants to buy a pint of beer. Will this chap chop off an ear of the pig for a pint of beer? 

It is difficult to see how these problems can be solved except for developing markets and money. 

However, money also has disadvantages.  In the villages, when money and markets did not exist, nothing was assigned a value.  People would freely exchange whatever surplus they had. So if a family had excess milk they would give that away to their neighbours. And when they required the neighbour to come and repair their machine, he would lovingly do it. So the entire village lived like a family. However, with the entry of markets and money, this free exchange and the feeling of oneness disappears, since everyone wants to sell their surplus and make as much money for themselves.

Answer 2

                I am a farmer. After I harvest my crops I have to go to various craftsman and give them some grains and get the things I need for my daily use. First I go to the milkman. He lives nearby. I give him around five kilos of grain. In return he supplies milk to my household for ten days. I also give five kilos to the weaver who makes clothes for me and my family.

                The vegetable seller has a cart. So he goes around the village and sells his vegetables, people pay him with some things. I pay him with grains.  He is very reasonable and takes one kilo grain for two kilo vegetables. In this way the barter system works well.

                But if I need some things which are not available in the village, I have to go to another village to get it. For that I need a cart or some conveyance. Again, I pay the driver with grain and carry grains to the other village. With this grain I buy the things in the village.

                This way I am totally dependent on agriculture. If I do not have grain to pay for the things I need I have to suffer. Besides it is very tedious to carry huge amounts to other places to buy things. And I do not get everything in one place. For each thing I have to go to a separate place. I wish we had some form of currency and market to solve this problem.