Lady Hyancinth Dysquith has a problem. Although this could probably be classified as a “first world problem”. She wants to find a new charity to become involved with. That sounds easy enough, but her goal doesn’t appear to be helping others quite as much as she wants the increased social status from people knowing that […]
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In “The Moneygoround”, The Kinks are singing about how their money keeps getting split up and re-spent before it reaches them. The band, naturally, does not sound happy about this occurring, but we should be happy that this song is a great introduction to the multiplier effect. The amount of final income from a new […]
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Amalia is thinking about writing a letter to a potential suitor, but gets distracted because Georg recently brought her ice cream when she was sick. The fact that Georg brought Amalia ice cream serves as a signal to her that he is a good person and perhaps could be a suitable partner. Signaling happens all […]
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Thanks to Brian O’Roark and Dirk Mateer for creating this video. The bankers singing the song Fidelity Fiduciary Bank in the movie version of Mary Poppins provide a perfect example of how lending and saving go hand in hand to facilitate investment. This is a rare song that includes the topic of compound interest and […]
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Outraged after publisher Joseph Pulitzer increases the cost of newspapers for the delivery boys (“newsies”) by ten cents per hundred, head newsie Jack Kelly organizes a union and ultimately a strike among his fellow newsies. This strike is known in history as the Newsboys’ Strike of 1899. The plot and lyrics of “The World Will […]
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In “Try Me”, delivery boy Arpad Laszlo is pleading for a promotion. After two years of self-training in Maraczek’s Parfumerie to prepare himself for a potential new job as a clerk, Arpad is trying to convince his boss to give him a chance. This song provides a good introduction to the value of on-the-job training, […]
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Thomas Jefferson and Alexander Hamilton have a “rap-off” about whether to have a national bank and whether the US government should assume the debts of the states. Hamilton is for it – Jefferson against. This song, set during George Washington’s presidency, still echoes debates we hear today. The US did open a central bank – […]
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“Just a Housewife” from the musical Working features housewife Kate Rushton, singing how society does not perceive her as intelligent due to her choice to be a stay-at-home mom. Her feeling of incompetence and being expendable increases when realizing that her work and skills are not viewed as valuable in society – specifically from an […]
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“My Shot”, from the musical Hamilton contains lyrics that illustrate several economic concepts. First, Hamilton is talking about going to King’s College (which is now Columbia University) to gain skills as he claims “the problem is I’ve gotta lotta brains but no polish”. In another part of “My Shot” we hear from Mulligan, who’s an […]
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The musical The Last Ship is set in Wallsend, England. In this town, there is one shipyard that will close in the near future. The workers sing about how “the only life we’ve known is in the shipyard”. With the closing of the shipyard, the workers will be unemployed. If their skills don’t translate easily into […]
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