How did people live a hundred years ago? We've seen the pictures, and it looks like we're much better off. We can't understand what it really cost someone then to buy something (like a meal or a pair of shoes) by just knowing the price in dollars because the dollar's value has changed so much since then.
But we can measure what they paid in the amount of time a person had to work to buy it - when we also figure in the average wage per hour both then and now. That's the kind of comparison we need.
And yes, it tells us that a hundred years ago people paid considerably more for common things. Here's a comparison of how much time an average worker had to work to buy a breakfast in 1919 compared to how much work time it takes now.
from Human Progress
(cont'd tomorrow)
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