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Moral Immunity: Debt as a Moral Shield

Moral Immunity: Debt as a Moral Shield

Common Concerns vor 6 Monaten

Debt as a Moral Shield

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45:19

In this episode of the “Common Concerns” podcast, Xiang Biao and
Ferda Nur Demirci discuss the concept of “moral immunity” in
relation to the indebtedness of miners in Soma, Turkey. In her
research, Ferda examines how miners use debt to regulate their
intimate relationships and to achieve a sense of moral immunity.
This concept is characterised by a desire to be immune to the
demands and pressures of family and friends, enabling the
individual to maintain a sense of independence and
self-discipline. She argues that the miners’ use of debt is not
driven solely by consumerism or the desire for material goods,
but rather by the need to regulate their relationships and attain
a sense of moral immunity. This is particularly evident in the
context of marriage payments, where debt is used to establish a
sense of independence and self-reliance. Ferdas’s research
highlights how the miners’ indebtedness has created a new form of
class consciousness, in which people identify as members of the
same group, yet without a sense of concrete, direct connections.
This is characterised by empathy, but not necessarily by a
willingness to act on behalf of others or to intervene. The
podcast also explores how the miners’ relationships have changed,
with a shift from a culture of sharing and solidarity towards
separate households and nuclear families. Whilst some forms of
solidarity, such as the sharing of agricultural produce, still
exist, debt management has become the norm in the region.
Overall, this episode offers a nuanced examination of the complex
relationships between debt, morality, and intimacy in the context
of neoliberal capitalism.