Ethnology teaches us about the astonishing arbitrariness, vacillation, and incongruities which characterize concepts of value in primitive cultures the moment their people are concerned with anything more than the most pressing daily necessities. Now there is no doubt that this phenomenon is caused by—in any event, is connected with—another phenomenon, the primitive man’s aversion to economic exchange. Several grounds for this aversion have been asserted. Since primitive man lacks an objective and generally accepted measure of value, he must constantly be afraid of being deceived when trading. Since any product of labor is brought forth by himself and for himself, he externalizes a part of his personality with it and may be giving the evil powers some control over him.

XREF: Connects to economic anthropology literature (Mauss on the gift, Malinowski) and argues the fear of trade predates modern transactional economics.

XREF: Connects to economic anthropology (Mauss's gift economies, Sahlins) and the long-standing debate over whether exchange aversion is rational or symbolic.

Georg Simmel, on individuality and social…, loc. 262