Market speculation functions as secular prophecy sustaining public faith in finance

Evidence

As finance took on a more pivotal role in fin de siècle economies, speculation assumed a more divinatory function to sustain public faith in markets: it became a “great rational prophecy,” giving meaning to the irrationalities of speculators’ new pursuits. — Aris Komporozos-Athanasiou, Speculative Communities, 227

Categorization

• DEFINE: Introduces ‘great rational prophecy’ as the concept naming speculation’s divinatory function in modern markets.
• SEED: Article angle: how prediction markets and financial forecasting inherit the structural role of religious prophecy — a genealogy from oracles to options pricing.
• XREF: connects to: Mainstream financiers historically fused market speculation with occult forecasting — Aris Komporozos-Athanasiou, Speculative Communities: Living With…, 201; Speculative technologies are both mediators and expressions of the finance-society relationship; Speculative technologies actively embed speculation into modern society — Aris Komporozos-Athanasiou, Speculative Communities: Living with…, 252 (+6 more)

Broader Connections

• Mainstream financiers historically fused market speculation with occult forecasting #corroborates (0.85) — Aris Komporozos-Athanasiou, Speculative Communities, 201
• Speculative technologies actively embed speculation into modern society #expands (0.78) — Aris Komporozos-Athanasiou, Speculative Communities, 252
• Speculative technologies are both mediators and expressions of the finance-society relationship #complicates (0.75)