The Market
The collective mechanism of exchanging goods, finance, ideas, and culture. Natural, or made to look natural.
How We Say It
The MAR·kit (common)
The MAH·kit (Long Island/NYC)
The MAH·kit (Long Island/NYC)
Where It Comes From
Latin mercatus — trade, traffic. From merx/mercis — goods, merchandise. Related to Mercury — god of commerce, travel, and communication. 'The market' as an autonomous agent — 'the market decided,' 'the market punished' — is a modern metaphor without ancient precedent.
How It's Been Used
Treating the market as a person with preferences and judgments is the defining rhetorical move of neoliberal economics. 'The market' cannot be argued with, voted against, or held accountable — it simply is. This depoliticizes what are actually choices made by people with power and interests.