On Public Debt and Its Modes: A Philosophical Exploration

Abstract

Public debt is one of the most important issues in our contemporary global debt economy. It determines whether something is politically feasible. Nevertheless, there are different ideological perspectives on public debt and its implications, which makes the status of public debt highly controversial. To avoid this deadlock, this philosophical thesis approaches and explores public debt in terms of its various modes. These modes are composed of public debt as well as its context. This context will be analyzed by discussing the nature of money, global monetary systems, the role of the state, and debt-credit relationships. Ultimately, this thesis will propose to consider public debt in terms of potentiality, which could enable a state to improve its effective monetary governance.