THE MORAL POWER OF MONEY CULTURE AND ECONOMIC LIFE EDITORS Frederick Wherry Jennifer C Lena Greta Hsu EDITORIAL BOARD Gabriel Abend Michel Anteby Nina Bandelj Shyon Baumann Katherine Chen Nigel Dodd Amir Goldberg David Grazian Wendy Griswold Brayden King Charles Kirschbaum Omar Lizardo Bill Maurer Elizabeth Pontikes Gabriel Rossman Lyn Spillman Klaus Weber Christine Williams Viviana Zelizer THE MORAL POWER OF MONEY Morality and Economy in the Life of the Poor ARIEL WILKIS STANFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS STANFORD, CALIFORNIA Stanford University Press Stanford, California English translation © 2018 by the Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University All rights reserved This work is published within the framework of the “Sur” Translation Support Program of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, International Trade and Worship of the Argentine Republic Obra editada en el marco del Programa “Sur” de Apoyo a las Traducciones del Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores, Comercio Internacional y Culto de la República Argentina A version of this book was originally published in Spanish in 2013 under the title Las sospechas del dinero Moral y economía en el mundo popular © 2013, Paidos—­Buenos Aires No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system without the prior written permission of Stanford University Press Printed in the United States of America on acid-­free, archival-­quality paper Library of Congress Cataloging-­in-­Publication Data Names: Wilkis, Ariel, author Title: The moral power of money : morality and economy in the life of urban poor / Ariel Wilkis Other titles: Sospechas del dinero English Description: Stanford, California : Stanford University Press, 2017 | Series: Culture and economic life | Originally published in 2013 in Spanish under the title: Las sospechas del dinero : moral y economia en el mundo popular | Includes bibliographical references and index | Description based on print version record and CIP data provided by publisher; resource not viewed Identifiers: LCCN 2017015911 (print) | LCCN 2017021410 (ebook) | ISBN 9781503604360 () | ISBN 9781503602861 (cloth : alk paper) | ISBN 9781503604285 (pbk : alk paper) Subjects: LCSH: Poor—Argentina—Buenos Aires | Money—Moral and ethical aspects— Argentina—Buenos Aires | Money—Social aspects—Argentina—Buenos Aires | Buenos Aires (Argentina)—Social conditions Classification: LCC HV4070.B84 (ebook) | LCC HV4070.B84 W55 2017 (print) | DDC 339.4/60982—dc23 LC record available at hgps://lccn.loc.gov/2017015911 To my parents, Ricardo and Silvia Wilkis This page intentionally left blank Contents Acknowledgments ix Introduction: Money and Moral Capital Lent Money 25 Earned Money 51 Donated Money 74 Political Money 93 Sacrificed Money 116 Safeguarded Money 135 Conclusion Methodological Appendix 157 167 Notes 179 References 185 Index 197 vii This page intentionally left blank Acknowledgments This is a fully revised translation of my book Las sospechas del dinero Moral y economía en el mundo popular (Buenos Aires: Paidos, 2013) Several people and organizations were supportive during my rewriting of it for almost three years First, I would like to thank Argentina’s Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Cientificas y Tecnológicas (CONICET; the National Council of Science and Technology Research) and the Instituto de Altos Estudios Sociales at the Universidad Nacional de San Martín; as my employers, both have supported my endeavors as a sociologist I am extremely grateful to Fred Wherry, co-­editor of Stanford University Press’s Culture and Economic Life series, for his generous support and encouragement SUP editors Jenny Gavacs and Kate Wahl were also extremely helpful throughout the process: Jenny at the beginning, and Kate in the final stages Wendy Gosselin did a formidable job on the translation, and I would like to thank her for embarking with me on this three-­year adventure Viviana Zelizer encouraged me to believe in my work and convinced me that publishing this book was well worthwhile Several friends and colleagues provided advice and recommendations on negotiating the world of American university presses; among them, I would like to especially thank Daniel Fridman, Martín Sivak, Valeria Manzano, Horacio Ortiz, Máximo Badaro, Nicolas D’Avella, Alejandro Dujovne, Marcela Amador Ospina, and Carlos Forment The New School invited me to New York as a visiting scholar, giving me the time I needed to finish the manuscript, and Pablo Miguez, Gabriel Kessler, Julian Troksberg, and Jennifer Adair kept me company while I was there, often at the Silvana bar in Harlem Finally, I cannot find the words to thank my son, Manuel, for all that he has given me ix ... topic of money in the world of the poor Experts in development have helped create a new paradigm for examining the world of the poor through the looking glass of money, while also expanding on the. .. out of their bags Before changing out of their blood-­stained clothes, they package the meat in smaller portions; the clients begin ringing the bell shortly after they finish They negotiate the. .. benefit The Moral Power of Money takes the opposite path, offering a new perspective on power in the everyday lives of the poor This conceptual approach begins by exploring the concept of moral