40 yuan in 1978, how much is it equivalent to today?

Mondo Finance Updated on 2024-02-29

Although money is not everything, it is becoming more and more useful in today's materialistic society. There are often things like "a penny is hard to beat a hero", so whether it is an individual's life or a family's happiness, it is closely related to money.

Even, for such a major event as marriage, some people think that "marriage without a material foundation cannot be guaranteed", because marriage means building a family, and the most basic thing is a house that can shelter from the wind and rain.

Nowadays, the ** of a house is often unbearable for young people, so a marriage often needs the support of parents. Therefore, we can say that it is indeed very difficult to do without money.

In the father's generation, the price of a marriage was only a few bags of food, and their life pursuit was simple, as long as they could fill their stomachs, they were satisfied. They believe that the meaning of marriage is that two people can live happily, and hardship is commonplace.

However, the current situation is that with the improvement of living standards, the value of money is getting lower and lower, but the pressure of marriage has not changed much. For example, 40 yuan may be equivalent to a few tens to hundreds of dollars in the parents' generation, but their value has not decreased.

If you simply compare, the pork ** at that time was 2 cents per catty, and now the stability ** is 20 yuan per catty, then the gap between pork ** has reached nearly 100 times.

But from an economic point of view, the gap will continue to widen. So why is money now "less and less valuable"? The answer lies in the changing times. In the past, the monthly salary may only be a dozen yuan to dozens of yuan, but now the salary is generally between 10,000 yuan and tens of thousands of yuan.

Although the value provided by the two is comparable in terms of time, the value of the two is not equal from an economic point of view.

Second, a happy life is our pursuit, and money is also a way to provide a happy life. Let's look back at $40 in 1978, how much "money" is it equivalent to if it is valued today?

As we all know, 1978 was the starting point of China's reform and opening up, but the living conditions at that time were still very difficult, and most people lived in poverty.

Just like pork nowadays, its value and meaning are different for different people. For the wealthy, pork may no longer have much appeal, and they pay more attention to more upscale things; And for the poor, pork is still a rare delicacy, because scarcity is expensive, and the more rare things are, the more people will cherish them.

Therefore, the same substance in different times can provide different levels of happiness.

In 1978, a salary of 40 yuan a month could buy a piece of meat and two taels of wine, which was already the satisfaction and joy of life for people of that era.

With the changes of the times, the current salary of 10,000 yuan may only pay for daily expenses for young people, and even face the pressure of repayment, so that the joy of getting a salary disappears in an instant.

Despite this, the salary of 10,000 yuan can still make people's living foundation be fundamentally improved, and the concept of consumption has also changed.

In modern society, people's pursuit of material life is getting higher and higher. A car is no longer a simple means of transportation, but a symbol of status and status.

A relatively good car can bring happiness, but for an era of material desires and people's hearts, it is far from meeting people's expectations. Luxury cars have become the goal of people's pursuit, and this pursuit has greatly reduced happiness.

In the same way, the house has changed from a necessity in people's lives to a mountain that weighs on the shoulders of young people. Ten thousand yuan is insignificant in the face of huge desires. For a young man living in a first-tier city with a monthly salary of 10,000 yuan, even if he does not consider cars and houses, self-sufficiency is barely enough.

If you have to take care of a family, the pressure of life is unimaginable, especially with another child, and the ensuing expenses make 10,000 yuan even more insignificant.

In the past, the happiness that a monthly salary of 40 yuan could bring and the happiness that a monthly salary of about 10,000 yuan could bring was incomparable. Even if you multiply the forty dollars of the past by a hundredfold, it cannot be compared with the present.

Because in that era, people's life pursuits were relatively simple, and most people were already very satisfied as long as they could have food and clothing, so life was life and life. Now we have no problem with food and clothing, and our pursuits are also diversified, but because we pursue too much, we are too stressed, and our happiness is greatly reduced.

Therefore, all things being equal, people in the past were much happier than they are now, and money seemed more valuable. In general, over the decades, the value of money and related aspects have changed, and the way people live has changed, but there are also certain drawbacks.

But that does not mean that we cannot deny the enormous benefits it has brought to the people. This is because of the inevitability of the times and the inferiority of human beings.

The essence and meaning of money, whenever and wherever it is, is determined by one's contribution to society. In the past, technology was underdeveloped, and the acquisition of money mainly relied on manpower; In modern times, knowledge has become a productive force, and people need to improve their contributions through continuous learning.

Therefore, for the current generation of young people, living in a knowledge-driven era, the pressures they face are not only physical, but also mental. In order to attain material life, they must keep learning, keep up with the times, and promote the development of society.

Learning is a never-ending thing in life, and knowledge is the primary productive force to promote social progress. Therefore, it is only through continuous learning that one can succeed in the modern society.

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