Final answer:
The success of cigarettes as an alternative currency in WWII POW camps is best attributed to their acceptability. This characteristic, combined with the fact that tobacco was highly valued and coveted among soldiers, ensured the universal recognition of cigarettes as a medium of exchange within the camps' informal economy.
Step-by-step explanation:
e. Acceptability.
The essential characteristics of any form of currency include durability, portability, and divisibility, but the most important characteristic that led to the success of cigarettes as an alternative currency was their universal acceptability among prisoners of war. During WWII, tobacco and cigarettes were highly valued commodities among soldiers, widely recognized not just for their smokeability but also for the comfort they were believed to provide. Moreover, in the constrained environment of a prison camp, cigarettes emerged as a readily accepted medium of exchange.
Cigarettes were durable enough to be stored and traded, portable enough to be carried easily, and divisible into single units for small transactions, but it was their acceptability that ultimately established them as a form of currency. They were compact, had high-value density, and could be used to buy services or goods within the camp's informal economy. Given that soldiers on both sides of the war were accustomed to smoking, cigarettes had intrinsic value and were widely coveted, which supported their use as an alternative currency. Their economic utility within POW camps was also bolstered by a certain uniformity and recognizability, fulfilling key functions of money.