Question

Which of the following statements is true of commerce between small-scale societies in the past?

a) It involved more institutionalized balanced reciprocity than is found generally in the international trade system today.
b) It involved far less social gain than is the case of international trade today.
c) Neither of the above statements is true because there was no commerce between small-scale societies in the past.

Answer 1

Commerce between small-scale societies involved more institutionalized balanced reciprocity than today's international trade, meaning exchanges were based on gift-giving and future reciprocation, tightly linked with social relations, rather than immediate market transactions.

Step-by-step explanation:

The nature of commerce between small-scale societies in the past is a subject that sheds light on the practices and social dynamics of early human civilizations. Statement (a) is correct in saying that such commerce involved more institutionalized balanced reciprocity than is found in the international trade system today. This means that instead of immediate bartering, small-scale societies often engaged in gift exchanges and the establishment of credit and debt, expecting a fair return of favors or goods at a future time.

This system of exchange was entangled in the social fabric, where communities remembered and enforced these obligations. In contrast, international trade today is more characterized by market exchange, where transactions are monetized and immediate. Furthermore, statement (b) is not accurate, as social gain was integral to the trade of small-scale societies, where the exchange of goods often bolstered social ties as well as the economy.