Re:Debt Worldwide Hits Record $86k per Person
by wsc981 on Saturday December 15, 2018 @12:08AM
(#18687160)
One of those examples of debt as a social construct is in my opinion the following, which shows that even in Western economies there can be a different meaning for this concept.
In English language there's a clear separation between debt and guilt. Debt is used for money, guilt for (e.g.) the legal system when talking about criminal activities. Those are 2 different words with 2 different meanings.
But in Dutch language we don't have different words for debt and guilt. Both concepts are essentially translated to the Dutch word for guilt ("schuld") which has a much more negative connotation than debt when talking about money. The same is true for the German language for example. And this might impact policies when dealing with debt, see: https://www.ft.com/content/a2c51e14-1ded-11e0-badd-00144feab...
In English language there's a clear separation between debt and guilt. Debt is used for money, guilt for (e.g.) the legal system when talking about criminal activities. Those are 2 different words with 2 different meanings.
But in Dutch language we don't have different words for debt and guilt. Both concepts are essentially translated to the Dutch word for guilt ("schuld") which has a much more negative connotation than debt when talking about money. The same is true for the German language for example. And this might impact policies when dealing with debt, see: https://www.ft.com/content/a2c51e14-1ded-11e0-badd-00144feab...