ABSTRACT

The first essential and distinctive feature for describing the market's functioning is that it is a mechanism based on the free exchange of resources among economic actors. The conditions on which markets operate, then, are very important indeed, and do make a difference in the way resources are allocated and used. In economic theory, the aim of intervening in the market is to ensure perfect competition. Products that offer the satisfaction of immediate pleasure are per definition easier to market. Since the market system is totally based on captivating individuals' preferences, people have no reasons to expect moral considerations will naturally occupy a paramount role in individuals' actions. The relationship of the common individuals with the market and its signs, though, is a totally different from the social assessment of the market mechanism. Individuals are bound to accept the rules of the market as the rules of the game.