What is commercialism?

Sometimes we hear accusations of mercantilism, greed and even self-interest. However, if you understand what is mercantile, then immediately there are "pitfalls". On the one hand, the numerous dictionaries of the Russian language emphasize that it is about financial prudence, unhealthy love of money and even lust for power in the commercial sense of the word. On the other hand, who determines the limits of this calculation? By what exactly criteria - ethical, financial or otherwise - can you judge the avarice? For example, if a person defends his personal interests, where then is the cordon between profit and ambitiousness?

In our country, where half of the people - the soul at a close, it is difficult to somehow immediately determine what mercantilism is. Greed - maybe. Computability is also possible. Even rationality. However, in practice, when you drop the usual moral definitions, you get into some kind of stupor: personal enrichment and petty-bourgeois accumulation, again, does not mean the manifestation of commercialism. The problem is, in fact, that we initially attribute a negative coloration to this phenomenon and use it as a negative ethical characteristic, but we are not trying to figure out what the word mercantile means.

Today, for some reason, it is believed that we are surrounded entirely by mercantile personalities who without undue doubt use human weaknesses for personal enrichment. Stop!

Maybe this is the whole point? That is, talking about what mercantilism is, we mean primarily the active, and not the moral meaning of the word. Enrich themselves by using the "passion" of others. To try every possible, even extreme measures for self-aggrandizement and at the same time boast of a moral fall. Turn white into black and vice versa, black to white. In other words, it's not about greed, unrestrained love for money and cold prudence. And in that, by what methods and due to what the long-awaited wealth is achieved.

Or another example. A girl marries a rich man. The surrounding accuse her of self-interest and commercialism. But does she wonder what is mercantile? Of course not! She just wants to provide for herself and her children. That they were educated and managed to get settled in this complex world. Sorry, but this is rational. Now if she had demanded a divorce six months later, before spending money and not thinking about the consequences, then we would safely say that this is the mercantile nature of women. A classic and bright example of this. But if all actions fit into the logic of ordinary flight from poverty, then accusations of commercialism do not have a real basis.

And the last. A bit joking, but seriously. Is it possible to consider a mercantile economy? Especially in those cases when earnings are barely enough for a living wage? To pore over every penny does not mean to become a mercantile person. Or even greedy. Simply calculating and rationality grow out of poverty, and mercantile spirit - from wealth. Moral entertainment is ....