Sociological Reflections on “Subsistence Economy”

How to Make the Weak Independent

Abstract

This paper aims at analyzing “subsistence economy” from a sociological point of view. “Subsistence” is a particular economy related to human dignity and life. After the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake in 1995, numerous volunteers engaged themselves in non-profit organizations to give support to the victims of the catastrophe, who had been cut off the rest of the society. I have identified through these activities the formation of a “subsistence economy” where it clearly appears that the weak manage to work with their own ability and become “independent” by the support of the other person. On the basis of this study, I suggest that “subsistence economy” means the formation of “another micro-market” inside market economy.