What Money Can’t Buy: The Moral Limits of Markets

 
The establishment of modern society that is inclined towards the rising consumerism impact on the relationship of the people in the society leads to debasing of moral values. The Moral Limits of Markets is a book written by Michael Sandel who is a political professor at Harvard and it gives an analysis of market impacts on lives of people.  The book What Money Can’t Buy: The Moral Limits of Markets gives the analysis of developing a modern society. It also gives the effects of the commercial relations in every sphere of life in the society. Michael provokes very crucial problem of developing ethics and morals of a society in which every product is sold or bought. The question Michael raises in the book is how far people should go in effort to sell as well as buy everything.  There are several ethical dilemmas that has no exact response and in therefore Michael tries to question the basic ethical and moral values that people actually ignore in everyday life. For instance, for Michael, dead peasants’ insurance story is a typical illustration of how market values can impact the behavior of industry.  And he illustrates how insurance which was originally from the idea of mitigating economic effects of the death on the dependents and survivors was slowly corrupted into a type of betting against the lives of other people.  He argues that the rising of commodification of people's existence is a type of corruption that weakens the relationship of people in the society. In addition, he believes that markets values govern the lives of people like never before and positive impact markets is possible in their right sphere. The most change that has occurred over decades is not rise in greed but it is the increase of market values and markets into the life spheres where they do not belong. Michael refutes the claim that markets have no moral effect and that they are amoral. In the world where all things are sold and bought, people forget to understand the reason for not buying or selling the others. 
Michael is against corruption because it has debased sex, love and friendship among people and argues that people have moved away from the market economy to the market society.  summarily, the book brings a discussion of the market driven age. For instance, the role of the markets in the society that is democratic and how people can protect moral that markets do not appreciate as well as money cannot buy.
The book focuses on contemporary society or community where the moral values affect the social relations and Michael emphases that commercialization has turn out to be the main trend in developing contemporary society.  Therefore, it is very hard to disapprove the author of the book because modern society or community   has started to move to commercialization since industrial revolution time.  The modern society can be looked at as consumerist where all goods or services are for sale. The author utilizes personal appeals to the readers questioning them of what else cash cannot purchase and what people cannot sell today. In this way, he encourages people to begin thinking of essential issues or matters as well as the role money can play in their life. The opinion of Michael is not meant to be imposed to people, however, he assists them to understand the consumerist culture.
 Michael is correct in the book when he reveals the contemporary consumerist culture vices. People turn to consumers and consumerism turns out to be the only aim of their life.  And therefore, excessive consumption results to destruction of the society. Michael focuses mainly on the moral or ethical issues of the society only. However, he pays little attention to the effects of the society commercialization on the environment. The negative effects of commercialization and consumerism of modern society on the environment is very obvious.  The activities of human beings inclined on the commerce and consumption results to damage of their environment, biodiversity decrease, species extinction and global climate change. It is clear that these changes destroy the human life and the entire life on the planet.  Nevertheless, Michael does not put into account all these issues or matters that undermines his opinion since the appeal to the ethical or moral matters can only be inadequate for the people that live consumerist society or community.  The uncovering of the impact of consumerism and commercialization on the environment would uncover that people encounter threat of extinction same as the others species living on planet. And therefore, this argument can be strong if Michael persuades people to change from sales and commerce to the morality and spirituality by changing their values.  In such a circumstance, devaluation of moral norms and ethical values arises since commerce and consumerism affects all the spheres of the human life. Sacred family concepts have turned out to be subjects to the sale and commerce.  For example, divorce rate today is very high and many of them involve financial issues or matters such that everyone turns out to be the subjects of trading during divorcing process. For instance, one partner has to give financial benefits in order to possess opportunities or chances to make communication with the children. Therefore, in this regard, the argument of Michael that commerce as well as the drive to sale everything has entered into people's consciousness appears to be reasonable and very right.  Michael indicates that such commercialization results to decrease or loss of the morality as well as devaluation of the ethical norms that are basic in the society. Similarly, he warns against commercialization of modern society because of possible emergence of immoral society.  The argument of Michael makes readers to conclude that excessive commercialization has resulted to loss of the spirituality whereas consumerism undermine the contemporary culture. Due to great awareness of the disastrous impacts of commercialization where all things are for sale, Michael tries to develop a resistance strategy in the establishing of the modern culture as well as society. Therefore, the main argument put by Michael in the defense of the spiritually grounded perception is rooted in the humanistic values.
The author therefore points out that there exists issues or matters which cannot stand the commercial relations. Additionally, he claims that people always provoke the commercialization of interpersonal relations when the commerce is actually, not needed.  For example, the case of the parents paying for good grades for their children instead of communicating as well as explaining to them what should be done. In such circumstance, the financial rewards turn out to be the main driver for the children, while learning becomes not the main goal but a tool for acquiring money or getting the material reward from the parents.
 However, the book What Money Can’t Buy: The Moral Limits of Markets continues to be an important book regarding the probable shift of modern culture and going back to the basic moral values as well as norms of the society.  The author tries to raise public awareness over development of modern society. In the contemporary world today, people are not aware of the significance of the basic human values and most importantly, they do not understand or know the vanity of pursuing wealth in terms of modern consumerist culture. Therefore, Michael’s What Money Can’t Buy: The Moral Limits of Markets uncovers the main trend of modern society inclined on consumption.  The commercialization trend of the interpersonal relations results to dehumanization and therefore the author tries to sensitize people on the negativity of commercialization on social life and human life. However, the book does not give a solution of the problem. The establishment of modern society that is inclined towards the rising consumerism impact on the relationship of the people in the society leads to debasing of moral values.  
Generally, the book What Money Can’t Buy: The Moral Limits of Markets gives the analysis of developing a modern society. It also gives the effects of the commercial relations in every sphere of life in the society. Michael provokes very crucial problem of developing ethics and morals of a society in which every product is sold or bought. The question Michael raises in the book is how far people should go in effort to sell as well as buy everything.  There are several ethical dilemmas that has no exact response and in therefore Michael tries to question the basic ethical and moral values that people actually ignore in everyday life. For instance, for Michael, dead peasants’ insurance story is a typical illustration of how market values can impact the behavior of industry.  And he illustrates how insurance which was originally from the idea of mitigating economic effects of the death on the dependents and survivors was slowly corrupted into a type of betting against the lives of other people.   Therefore, the main argument put by Michael in the defense of the spiritually grounded perception is rooted in the humanistic values. The author points out that there exists issues or matters which cannot stand the commercial relations. Additionally, he claims that people always provoke the commercialization of interpersonal relations when the commerce is actually, not needed.   Most change that has occurred over decades is not rise in greed but it is the increase of market values and markets into the life spheres where they do not belong. Michael refutes the claim that markets have no moral effect and that they are amoral. In the world where all things are sold and bought, people forget to understand the reason for not buying or selling the other things. The book focuses on contemporary society or community where the moral values affect the social relations and Michael emphases that commercialization has turn out to be the main trend in developing contemporary society.  Therefore, it is very hard to disapprove the author of the book because modern society or community has started to move to commercialization since industrial revolution time.