M。ProudhonhasthemisfortuneofbeingpeculiarlymisunderstoodinEurope。InFrance,hehastherighttobeabadeconomist,becauseheisreputedtobeagoodGermanphilosopher。InGermany,hehastherighttobeabadphilosopher,becauseheisreputedtobeoneoftheablestFrencheconomists。BeingbothGermanandeconomistatthesametime,wedesiretoprotestagainstthisdoubleerror。
ThereaderwillunderstandthatinthisthanklesstaskwehaveoftenhadtoabandonourcriticismofM。ProudhoninordertocriticizeGermanphilosophy,andatthesametimetogivesomeobservationsonpoliticaleconomy。
KarlMarxBrussels,June15,1847
M。Proudhon’sworkisnotjustatreatiseonpoliticaleconomy,anordinarybook;itisabible。\"mysteries\",\"SecretsWrestedfromtheBosomofGod\",\"Revelations\"——itlacksnothing。Butasprophetsarediscussednowadaysmoreconscientiouslythanprofanewriters,thereadermustresignhimselftogoingwithusthroughthearidandgloomyeruditionsof\"Genesis\",inordertoascendlater,withM。Proudhon,intotheetherealandfertilerealmofsuper—socialism。(SeeProudhon,PhilosophyofPoverty,Prologue,p。III,line20。)
Chapter1
ASCIENTIFICDISCOVERY
1。
THEANTITHESISOFUSEVALUEANDEXCHANGEVALUE
\"Thecapacityforallproducts,whethernaturalorindustrial,tocontributetoman’ssubsistenceisspecificallytermedusevalue;theircapacitytobegiveninexchangeforoneanother,exchangevalue……Howdoesusevaluebecomeexchangevalue?……Thegenesisoftheideaof(exchange)valuehasnotbeennotedbyeconomistswithsufficientcare。Itisnecessary,therefore,forustodwelluponit。SinceaverylargenumberofthethingsIneedoccurinnatureonlyinmoderatequantities,orevennotatall,IamforcedtoassistintheproductionofwhatIlack。AndasIcannotsetmyhandtosomanythings,Ishallproposetoothermen,mycollaboratorsinvariousfunctions,tocedetomeapartoftheirproductsinexchangeformine。\"
(Proudhon,Vol。I,Chap。II)
M。Proudhonundertakestoexplaintousfirstofallthedoublenatureofvalue,the\"distinctioninvalue\",theprocessbywhichusevalueistransformedintoexchangevalue。ItisnecessaryforustodwellwithM。Proudhonuponthisactoftransubstantiation。Thefollowingishowthisactisaccomplished,accordingtoourauthor。
Averylargenumberofproductsarenottobefoundinnature,theyareproductsofindustry。Ifman’sneedsgobeyondnature’sspontaneousproduction,heisforcedtohaverecoursetoindustrialproduction。WhatisthisindustryinM。Proudhon’sview?Whatisitsorigin?Asingleindividual,feelingtheneedforaverygreatnumberofthings,\"cannotsethishandtosomanythings\"。Somanythingstoproducepresupposeatoncemorethanoneman’shandhelpingtoproducethem。Now,themomentyoupostulatemorethanonehandhelpinginproduction,youatoncepresupposeawholeproductionbasedonthedivisionoflabor。Thusneed,asM。Proudhonpresupposesit,itselfpresupposesthewholedivisionoflabor。Inpresupposingthedivisionoflabor,yougetexchange,and,consequently,exchangevalue。Onemightaswellhavepresupposedexchangevaluefromtheverybeginning。
ButM。Proudhonpreferstogotheroundaboutway。Letusfollowhiminallhisdetours,whichalwaysbringhimbacktohisstartingpoint。
Inordertoemergefromtheconditioninwhicheveryoneproducesinisolationandtoarriveatexchange,\"Iturntomycollaboratorsinvariousfunctions,\"saysM。Proudhon。I,myself,then,havecollaborators,allwithdifferentfunction。Andyet,forallthat,Iandalltheothers,alwaysaccordingtoM。Proudhon’ssupposition,havegotnofartherthanthesolitaryandhardlysocialpositionoftheRobinsons。Thecollaboratorsandthevariousfunctions,thedivisionoflaborandtheexchangeitimplies,arealreadyathand。
Tosumup:Ihavecertainneedswhicharefoundedonthedivisionoflaborandonexchange。Inpresupposingtheseneeds,M。Proudhonhasthuspresupposedexchange,exchangevalue,theverythingofwhichhepurposesto\"notethegenesiswithmorecarethanothereconomists\"。
M。Proudhonmightjustaswellhaveinvertedtheorderofthings,withoutinanywayaffectingtheaccuracyofhisconclusions。Toexplainexchangevalue,wemusthaveexchange。Toexplainexchange,wemusthavethedivisionoflabor。Toexplainthedivisionoflabor,wemusthaveneedswhichrendernecessarythedivisionoflabor。Toexplaintheseneeds,wemust\"presuppose\"them,whichisnottodenythem——contrarytothefirstaxiominM。Proudhon’sprologue:\"TopresupposeGodistodenyHim。\"(Prologue,p。1)
HowdoesM。Proudhon,whoassumesthedivisionoflaborastheknown,managetoexplainexchangevalue,whichforhimisalwaystheunknown?
\"Aman\"setsoutto\"proposetoothermen,hiscollaboratorsinvariousfunctions\",thattheyestablishexchange,andmakeadistinctionbetweenordinaryvalueandexchangevalue。Inacceptingthisproposeddistinction,thecollaboratorshaveleftM。Proudhonnoother\"care\"thanthatofrecordingthefact,ormarking,of\"noting\"inhistreatiseonpoliticaleconomy\"thegenesisoftheideaofvalue\"。Buthehasstilltoexplaintousthe\"genesis\"ofthisproposal,totellusfinallyhowthissingleindividual,thisRobinson[Crusoe],suddenlyhadtheideaofmaking\"tohiscollaborators\"
aproposalofthetypeknownandhowthesecollaboratorsaccepteditwithouttheslightestprotest。
M。Proudhondoesnotenterintothesegenealogicaldetails。Hemerelyplacesasortofhistoricalstampuponthefactofexchange,bypresentingitintheformofamotion,madebyathirdparty,thatexchangebeestablished。
Thatisasampleofthe\"historicalanddescriptivemethod\"ofM。Proudhon,whoprofessesasuperbdisdainforthe\"historicalanddescriptivemethods\"oftheAdamSmithsandRicardos。
Exchangehasahistoryofitsown。Ithaspassedthroughdifferentphases。Therewasatime,asintheMiddleAges,whenonlythesuperfluous,theexcessofproductionoverconsumption,wasexchanged。
Therewasagainatime,whennotonlythesuperfluous,butallproducts,allindustrialexistence,hadpassedintocommerce,whenthewholeofproductiondependedonexchange。Howarewetoexplainthissecondphaseofexchange——marketablevalueatitssecondpower?
M。Proudhonwouldhaveareplyready—made:Assumethatamanhas\"proposedtoothermen,hiscollaboratorsinvariousfunctions\",toraisemarketablevaluetoitssecondpower。
Finally,therecameatimewheneverythingthatmenhadconsideredasinalienablebecameanobjectofexchange,oftrafficandcouldbealienated。
Thisisthetimewhentheverythingswhichtillthenhadbeencommunicated,butneverexchanged;given,butneversold;acquired,butneverbought——virtue,love,conviction,knowledge,conscience,etc。——wheneverything,inshort,passedintocommerce。Itisthetimeofgeneralcorruption,ofuniversalvenality,or,tospeakintermsofpoliticaleconomy,thetimewheneverything,moralorphysical,havingbecomeamarketablevalue,isbroughttothemarkettobeassessedatitstruestvalue。
How,again,canweexplainthisnewandlastphaseofexchange——marketablevalueatitsthirdpower?
M。Proudhonwouldhaveareplyready—made:Assumethatapersonhas\"proposedtootherpersons,hiscollaboratorsinvariousfunctions\",tomakeamarketablevalueoutofvirtue,love,etc。,toraiseexchangevaluetoitsthirdandlastpower。
WeseethatM。Proudhon’s\"historicalanddescriptivemethod\"
isapplicabletoeverything,itanswerseverything,explainseverything。
Ifitisaquestionaboveallofexplaininghistorically\"thegenesisofaneconomicidea\",itpostulatesamanwhoproposestoothermen,\"hiscollaboratorsinvariousfunctions\",thattheyperformthisactofgenesisandthatistheendofit。
Weshallhereafteracceptthe\"genesis\"ofexchangevalueasanaccomplishedact;itnowremainsonlytoexpoundtherelationbetweenexchangevalueandusevalue。LetushearwhatM。Proudhonhastosay:
\"Economistshaveverywellbroughtoutthedoublecharacterofvalue,butwhytheyhavenotpointedoutwiththesameprecisionisitscontradictorynature;thereiswhereourcriticismbegins……
\"Itisasmallthingtohavedrawnattentiontothissurprisingcontrastbetweenusevalueandexchangevalue,inwhicheconomistshavebeenwonttoseeonlysomethingverysimple:wemustshowthatthisallegedsimplicityconcealsaprofoundmysteryintowhichitisourdutytopenetrate……
\"Intechnicalterms,usevalueandexchangevaluestandininverseratiotoeachother。\"
IfwehavethoroughlygraspedM。Proudhon’sthoughtthefollowingarethefourpointswhichhesetsouttoestablish:
Usevalueandexchangevalueforma\"surprisingcontrast\",theyareinoppositiontoeachother。
Usevalueandexchangevalueareininverseratio,incontradiction,toeachother。
Economistshaveneitherobservednotrecognizedeithertheoppositionorthecontradiction。
M。Proudhon’scriticismbeginsattheend。
We,too,shallbeginattheend,and,inordertocleartheeconomistsfromM。Proudhon’saccusations,weshalllettwosufficientlywell—knowneconomistsspeakforthemselves。
SISMONDI:
\"Itistheoppositionbetweenusevalueandexchangevaluetowhichcommercehasreducedeverything,etc。\"
(Etudes,VolumeII,p。162,Brusselsedition)
LAUDERDALE:
\"Inproportionastherichesofindividualsareincreasedbyanaugmentationofthevalueofanycommodity,thewealthofthesocietyisgenerallydiminished;andinproportionasthemassofindividualrichesisdiminished,bythediminutionofthevalueofanycommodity,itsopulenceisgenerallyincreased。\"
(Recherchessurlanatureetl’originedelarichessepublique;translatedbyLangentiedeLavaisse。Paris1808[p。33])[1]
Sismondifoundedontheoppositionbetweenusevalueandexchangevaluehisprincipaldoctrine,accordingtowhichdiminutioninrevenueisproportionaltotheincreaseinproduction。
Lauderdalefoundedhissystemontheinverseratioofthetwokindsofvalue,andhisdoctrinewasindeedsopopularinRicardo’stimethatthelattercouldspeakofitasofsomethinggenerallyknown。
\"Itisthroughconfoundingtheideasofvalueandwealth,orrichesthatithasbeenasserted,thatbydiminishingthequantityofcommodities,thatistosay,ofthenecessaries,conveniences,andenjoymentsofhumanlife,richesmaybeincreased。\"
(Ricardo,Principlesdela’economiepolitiquetranslatedbyConstancio,annotationsbyJ。B。Say。
Paris1835;VolumeII,chapterSurlavaleuretlesrichesses)
WehavejustseenthattheeconomistsbeforeM。Proudhonhad\"drawnattention\"
totheprofoundmysteryofoppositionandcontradiction。LetusnowseehowM。Proudhonexplainsthismysteryaftertheeconomists。
Theexchangevalueofaproductfallsasthesupplyincreases,thedemandremainingthesame;inotherwords,themoreabundantaproductisrelativelytothedemand,thelowerisitsexchangevalue,orprice。
Viceversa:Theweakerthesupplyrelativelytothedemand,thehigherrisestheexchangevalueorthepriceoftheproductsupplied:inotherwords,thegreaterthescarcityintheproductssupplied,relativelytothedemand,thehighertheprices。Theexchangevalueofaproductdependsuponitsabundanceoritsscarcity;butalwaysinrelationtothedemand。
Takeaproductthatismorethanscarce,uniqueofitskindifyouwill:
thisuniqueproductwillbemorethanabundant,itwillbesuperfluous,ifthereisnodemandforit。Ontheotherhand,takeaproductmultipliedintomillions,itwillalwaysbescarceifitdoesnotsatisfythedemand,thatis,ifthereistoogreatademandforit。
Thesearewhatweshouldalmostcalltruisms,yetwehavehadtorepeatthemhereinordertorenderM。Proudhon’smysteriescomprehensible。
\"Sothat,followinguptheprincipletoitsultimateconsequences,onewouldcometotheconclusion,themostlogicalintheworld,thatthethingswhoseuseisindispensableandwhosequantityisunlimitedshouldbehadfornothing,andthosewhoseutilityisnilandwhosescarcityisextremeshouldbeofincalculableworth。Tocapthedifficulty,theseextremesareimpossibleinpractice:ontheonehand,nohumanproductcouldeverbeunlimitedinmagnitude;ontheother,eventhescarcestthingsmustperforcebeusefultoacertaindegree,otherwisetheywouldbequitevalueless。
Usevalueandexchangevaluearethusinexorablyboundupwitheachother,althoughbytheirnaturetheycontinuallytendtobemutuallyexclusive。\"
(VolumeI,p。39)
WhatcapsM。Proudhon’sdifficulty?Thathehassimplyforgottenaboutdemand,andthatathingcanbescarceorabundantonlyinsofarasitisindemand。Themomentheleavesoutdemand,heidentifiesexchangevaluewithscarcityandusevaluewithabundance。Inreality,insayingthatthings\"whoseutilityisnilandscarcityextremeareofincalculableworth\",heissimplydeclaringthatexchangevalueismerelyscarcity。\"Scarcityextremeandutilitynil\"meanspurescarcity。\"Incalculableworth\"isthemaximumofexchangevalue,itispureexchangevalue。Heequatesthesetwoterms。Thereforeexchangevalueandscarcityareequivalentterms。
Inarrivingatthesealleged\"extremeconsequences\",M。Proudhonhasinfactcarriedtotheextreme,notthethings,butthetermswhichexpressthem,and,insodoing,heshowsproficiencyinrhetoricratherthaninlogic。Hemerelyrediscovershisfirsthypothesesinalltheirnakedness,whenhethinkhehasdiscoverednewconsequences。Thankstothesameprocedurehesucceedsinidentifyingusevaluewithpureabundance。
Afterhavingequatedexchangevalueandscarcity,usevalueandabundance,M。Proudhonisquiteastonishednottofindusevalueinscarcityandexchangevalue,norexchangevalueinabundanceandusevalue;andseeingthattheseextremesareimpossibleinpractice,hecandonothingbutbelieveinmystery。Incalculableworthexistsforhim,becausebuyersdonotexist,andhewillneverfindanybuyers,solongasheleavesoutdemand。
Ontheotherhand,M。Proudhon’sabundanceseemstobesomethingspontaneous。Hecompletelyforgetsthattherearepeoplewhoproduceit,andthatitistotheirinterestnevertolosesightofdemand。Otherwise,howcouldM。Proudhonhavesaidthatthingswhichareveryusefulmusthaveaverylowprice,orevencostnothing?Onthecontrary,heshouldhaveconcludedthatabundance,theproductionofveryusefulthings,shouldberestrictediftheirprice,theirexchangevalueistoberaised。
Theoldvine—growersofFranceinpetitioningforalawtoforbidtheplantingofnewvines;theDutchinburningAsiaticspices,inuprootingclovetreesintheMoluccas,weresimplytryingtoreduceabundanceinordertoraiseexchangevalue。DuringthewholeoftheMiddleAgesthissameprinciplewasactedupon,inlimitingbylawsthenumberofjourneymenasinglemastercouldemployandthenumberofimplementshecoulduse。
(SeeAnderson,HistoryofCommerce。)[Thefullreference:A。Anderson,AnHistoricalandChronologicalDeductionoftheOriginofCommercefromtheEarliestAccountstothePresentTime。FirsteditionappearedinLondonin1764。p。33]
Afterhavingrepresentedabundanceasusevalueandscarcityasexchangevalue——nothingindeediseasierthantoprovethatabundanceandscarcityareininverseratio——M。Proudhonidentifiesusevaluewithsupplyandexchangevaluewithdemand。Tomaketheantithesisevenmoreclear—cut,hesubstitutesanewterm,putting\"estimationvalue\"
insteadofexchangevalue。Thebattlehasnowshifteditsground,andwehaveononesideutility(usevalue,supply),ontheotherside,estimation(exchangevalue,demand)。
Whoistoreconcilethesetwocontradictoryforces?Whatistobedonetobringthemintoharmonywitheachother?Isitpossibletofindinthemevenasinglepointofcomparison?
\"Certainly,\"criesM。Proudhon,\"thereisone——freewill。Thepriceresultingfromthisbattlebetweensupplyanddemand,betweenutilityandestimationwillnotbetheexpressionofeternaljustice。\"
M。Proudhongoesontodevelopthisantithesis。
\"Inmycapacityasafreebuyer,Iamjudgeofmyneeds,judgeofthedesirabilityofanobject,judgeofthepriceIamwillingtopayforit。
Ontheotherhand,inyourcapacityasafreeproducer,youaremasterofthemeansofexecution,andinconsequence,youhavethepowertoreduceyourexpenses。\"
(VolumeI,p。41)
Andasdemand,orexchangevalue,isidenticalwithestimation,M。Proudhonisledtosay:
\"Itisprovedthatitisman’sfreewillthatgivesrisetotheoppositionbetweenusevalueandexchangevalue。Howcanthisoppositionberemoved,solongasfreewillexists?Andhowcanthelatterbesacrificedwithoutsacrificingmankind?\"
(VolumeI,p。41)
Thusthereisnopossiblewayout。Thereisastrugglebetweentwoasitwereincommensurablepowers,betweenutilityandestimation,betweenthefreebuyerandthefreeproducer。
Letuslookatthingsalittlemoreclosely。
Supplydoesnotrepresentexclusivelyutility,demanddoesnotrepresentexclusivelyestimation。Doesnotthedemanderalsosupplyacertainproductorthetokenrepresentingallproducts——viz。,money;andassupplier,doeshenotrepresent,accordingtoM。Proudhon,utilityorusevalue?
Again,doesnotthesupplieralsodemandacertainproductorthetokenrepresentingallproduct——viz。,money?Anddoeshenotthusbecometherepresentativeofestimation,ofestimationvalueorofexchangevalue?
Demandisatthesametimeasupply,supplyisatthesametimeademand。ThusM。Proudhon’santithesis,insimplyidentifyingsupplyanddemand,theonewithutility,theotherwithestimation,isbasedonlyonafutileabstraction。
WhatM。Proudhoncallsusevalueiscalledestimationvaluebyothereconomists,andwithjustasmuchright。WeshallquoteonlyStorch(Coursd’economiepolitique,Paris1823,pp。48and49)。
Accordingtohim,needsarethethingsforwhichwefeeltheneed;valuesarethingstowhichweattributevalue。Mostthingshavevalueonlybecausetheysatisfyneedsengenderedbyestimation。Theestimationofourneedsmaychange;thereforetheutilityofthings,whichexpressesonlytherelationofthesethingstoourneeds,mayalsochange。
Naturalneedsthemselvesarecontinuallychanging。Indeed,whatcouldbemorevariedthantheobjectswhichformthestaplefoodofdifferentpeoples!
Theconflictdoesnottakeplacebetweenutilityandestimation;
ittakesplacebetweenthemarketablevaluedemandedbythesupplierandthemarketablevaluesuppliedbythedemander。Theexchangevalueoftheproductiseachtimetheresultantofthesecontradictoryappreciations。
Infinalanalysis,supplyanddemandbringtogetherproductionandconsumption,butproductionandconsumptionbasedonindividualexchanges。
Theproductsuppliedisnotusefulinitself。Itistheconsumerwhodeterminesitsutility。Andevenwhenitsqualityofbeingusefulisadmitted,itdoesnotexclusivelyrepresentutility。Inthecourseofproduction,ithasbeenexchangedforallthecostsofproduction,suchasrawmaterials,wagesofworkers,etc。,allofwhicharemarketablevalues。Theproduct,therefore,represents,intheeyesoftheproducer,asumtotalofmarketablevalues。Whathesuppliesisnotonlyausefulobject,butalsoandaboveallamarketablevalue。
Astodemand,itwillonlybeeffectiveonconditionthatithasmeansofexchangeatitsdisposal。Thesemeansarethemselvesproducts,marketablevalue。
Insupplyanddemand,then,wefindontheonehandaproductwhichhascostmarketablevalues,andtheneedtosell;ontheother,meanswhichhavecostmarketablevalues,andthedesiretobuy。
M。Proudhonopposesthefreebuyertothefreeproducer。Totheoneandtotheotherheattributespurelymetaphysicalqualities。Itisthisthatmakeshimsay:
\"Itisprovedthatitisman’sfreewillthatgivesrisetotheoppositionbetweenusevalueandexchangevalue。\"
[I41]
Theproducer,themomentheproducesinasocietyfoundedonthedivisionoflaborandonexchange(andthatisM。Proudhon’shypothesis),isforcedtosell。M。Proudhonmakestheproducermasterofthemeansofproduction;
buthewillagreewithusthathismeansofproductiondonotdependonfreewill。Moreover,manyofthesemeansofproductionareproductswhichhegetsfromtheoutside,andinmodernproductionheisnotevenfreetoproducetheamounthewants。Theactualdegreeofdevelopmentoftheproductiveforcescompelshimtoproduceonsuchorsuchascale。
Theconsumerisnofreerthantheproducer。Hisjudgmentdependsonhismeansandhisneeds。Bothofthesearedeterminedbyhissocialposition,whichitselfdependsonthewholesocialorganization。True,theworkerwhobuyspotatoesandthekeptwomanwhobuyslacebothfollowtheirrespectivejudgments。Butthedifferenceintheirjudgementsisexplainedbythedifferenceinthepositionswhichtheyoccupyintheworld,andwhichthemselvesaretheproductofsocialorganization。
Istheentiresystemofneedsonestimationoronthewholeorganizationofproduction?Mostoften,needsarisedirectlyfromproductionorfromastateofaffairsbasedonproduction。Thus,tochooseanotherexample,doesnottheneedforlawyerssupposeagivencivillawwhichisbuttheexpressionofacertaindevelopmentofproperty,thatistosay,ofproduction?
ItisnotenoughforM。Proudhontohaveeliminatedtheelementsjustmentionedfromtherelationofsupplyanddemand。Hecarriesabstractiontothefurthestlimitswhenhefusesallproducersintoonesingleproducer,allconsumersintoonesingleconsumer,andsetsupastrugglebetweenthesetwochimericalpersonages。Butintherealworld,thingshappenotherwise。
Thecompetitionamongthesuppliersandthecompetitionamongthedemandersformanecessarypartofthestrugglebetweenbuyersandsellers,ofwhichmarketablevalueistheresult。
Afterhavingeliminatedcompetitionandthecostofproduction,M。Proudhoncanathiseasereducetheformulaofsupplyanddemandtoanabsurdity。
\"Supplyanddemand,\"hesays,\"aremerelytwoceremonialformsthatservetobringusevalueandexchangevaluefacetoface,andtoleadtotheirreconciliation。Theyarethetwoelectricpoleswhich,whenconnected,mustproducethephenomenonofaffinitycalledexchange。\"
(VolumeI,pp。49and50)
Onemightaswellsaythatexchangeismerelya\"ceremonialform\"forintroducingtheconsumertotheobjectofconsumption。Onemightaswellsaythatalleconomicrelationsare\"ceremonialforms\"servingimmediateconsumptionasgo—betweens。Supplyanddemandareneithermorenorlessrelationsofagivenproductionthanareindividualexchanges。
What,then,doesallM。Proudhon’sdialecticconsistin?Inthesubstititionforusevalueandexchangevalue,forsupplyanddemand,ofabstractandcontradictorynotionslikescarcityandabundance,utilityandestimation,oneproducerandoneconsumer,bothofthemknightsoffreewill。
Andwhatwasheaimingat?
Atarrangingforhimselfameansofintroducinglaterononeoftheelementshehadsetaside,thecostofproduction,asthesynthesisofusevalueandexchangevalue。Anditisthusthatinhiseyesthecostofproductionconstitutessyntheticvalueorconstitutedvalue。
2。
CONSTITUTEDVALUEORSYNTHETICVALUE
\"Value(marketablevalue)isthecorner—stoneoftheeconomicstructure。\"\"Constituted\"valueisthecorner—stoneofthesystemofeconomiccontradictions。
Whatthenisthis\"constitutedvalue’whichisallM。Proudhonhasdiscoveredinpoliticaleconomy?
Onceutilityisadmitted,laboristhesourceofallvalue。Themeasureoflaboristime。Therelativevalueofproductsisdeterminedbythelabortimerequiredfortheirproduction。Priceisthemonetaryexpressionoftherelativevalueofaproduct。Finally,thetheconstitutedvalueofaproductispurelyandsimplythevaluewhichisconstitutedbythelabortimeincorporatedinit。
JustasAdamSmithdiscoveredthedivisionoflabor,sohe,M。
Proudhon,claimstohavediscovered\"constitutedvalue\"。Thisisnotexactly\"somethingunheardof\",butthenitmustbeadmittedthatthereisnothingunheardofinnydiscoveryofeconomicscience。M。Proudhon,whoappreciatestothefulltheimportanceofhisowninvention,seeksneverthelesstotonedownthemerittherefore\"inordertoreassurethereadertoashisclaimstooriginality,andtowinovermindswhosetimidityrendersthemlittlefavorabletonewideas\"。Butinapportioningthecontributionmadebyeachofhispredecessorstotheunderstandingofvalue,heisforcedtoconfessopenlythatthelargestportion,thelion’sshare,ofthemeritfallstohimself。
\"ThesyntheticideaofvaluehadbeenvaguelyperceivedbyAdamSmith……
ButwithAdamSmiththeideaofvaluewasentirelyintuitive。Now,societydoesnotchangeitshabitsmerelyonthestrengthofintuitions:itsdecisionsaremadeonlyontheauthorityoffacts。Theantinomyhadtobestatedmorepalpablyandmoreclearly:J。B。Saywasitschiefinterpreter。\"
[I66]
Here,inanutshell,isthehistoryofthediscoveryofsyntheticvalue:
AdamSmith——vagueintuition;J。B。Say——antinomy;M。Proudhon——constitutingand\"constituted\"truth。Andlettherebenomistakeaboutit:alltheothereconomists,fromSaytoProudhon,havemerelybeentrudgingalongintherutofantimony。
\"Itisincrediblethatforthelast40yearssomanymenofsenseshouldhavefumedandfrettedatsuchasimpleidea。Butno,valuesarecomparedwithouttherebeinganypointofcomparisonbetweenthemandwithnounitofmeasurements;this,ratherthanembracetherevolutionarytheoryofequality,iswhattheeconomistsofthe19thcenturyareresolvedtoupholdagainstallcomers。Whatwillposteritysayaboutit?\"
(Vol。I,p。68)
Posterity,soabruptlyinvoked,willbeginbygettingmuddledoverthechronology。Itisboundtoaskitself:arenotRicardoandhisschooleconomistsofthe19thcentury?Ricardo’ssystem,puttingasaprinciplethat\"therelativevalueofcommoditiescorrespondsexclusivelytotheirproduction\",datesfrom1817。RicardoistheheadofawholeschooldominantinEnglandsincetheRestoration。[TheperiodinquestionbeginsaftertheterminationoftheNapoleonicwarsandrestorationoftheBourbondynastyinFrancein1815。]TheRicardiandoctrinesummarizesseverely,remorselessly,thewholeoftheEnglishbourgeoisie。\"Whatwillposteritysayaboutit?\"ItwillnotsaythatM。ProudhondidnotknowRicardo,forhetalksabouthim,hetalksatlengthabouthim,hekeepscomingbacktohim,andconcludesbycallinghissystem\"trash\"。Ifeverposteritydoesinterfere,itwillsayperhapsthatM。Proudhon,afraidofoffendinghisreaders’Anglophobia,preferredtomakehimselftheresponsibleeditorofRicardo’sideas。Inanycase,itwillthinkitverynaivethatM。Proudhonshouldgiveasa\"revolutionarytheoryofthefuture\"whatRicardoexpoundedscientificallyasthetheoryofpresent—daysociety,ofbourgeoissociety,andthatheshouldthustakeforthesolutionoftheantinomybetweenutilityandexchangevaluewhatRicardoandhisschoolpresentedlongbeforehimasthescientificformulaofonesinglesideofthisantinomy,thatofexchangevalue。Butletusleaveposterityaloneonceandforall,andconfrontM。ProudhonwithhispredecessorRicardo。Herearesomeextractsfromthisauthorwhichsummarizehisdoctrineonvalue:
\"Utilitytheninnotthemeasureofexchangeablevalue,althoughitisabsolutelyessentialtoit。\"
(Vol。I,p。3,Principlesdel’economiepolitique,etc。,translatedfromtheEnglishbyF。S。Constancio,Paris1835)
\"Possessingutility,commoditiesderivetheirexchangeablevaluefromtwosources:fromtheirscarcity,andfromthequantityoflaborrequiredtoobtaintheM。Therearesomecommodities,thevalueofwhichisdeterminedbytheirscarcityalone。Nolaborcanincreasethequantityofsuchgoods,andthereforetheirvaluecannotbeloweredbyanincreasedsupply。Somerarestatuesandpictures,scarcebooks……areallofthisdescription。
Theirvalue……varieswiththevaryingwealthandinclinationsofthosewhoaredesiroustopossessthem。\"
(Vol。I,pp。4and5,l。c。)
\"Thesecommodities,however,formaverysmallpartofthemassofcommoditiesdailyexchangedinthemarket。Byfarthegreatestpartofthesegoodswhicharetheobjectsofdesire,areprocuredbylabor;andtheymaybemultiplied,notinonecountryalone,butinmany,almostwithoutanyassignablelimit,ifwearedisposedtobestowthelabornecessarytoobtainthem。\"
(Vol。I,pp。5,l。c。)
\"Inspeakingthenofcommodities,oftheirexchangeablevalue,andofthelawswhichregulatetheirrelativeprices,wemeanalwayssuchcommoditiesonlyascanbeincreasedinquantitybytheexertionofhumanindustry,andontheproductionofwhichcompetitionoperateswithoutrestraint。\"
(Vol。I,pp。5)
RicardoquotesAdamSmith,who,accordingtohim,\"soaccuratelydefinedtheoriginalsourceofexchangeablevalue\"(AdamSmith,WealthofNations,BookI,Chap5[Fullreference:AnInquiryintotheNatureandCausesoftheWealthofNations,firsteditionappearinginLondon,1776]),andheadds:
\"Thatthis(i。e。,labortime)isreallythefoundationoftheexchangeablevalueofallthings,exceptingthosewhichcannotbeincreasedbyhumanindustry,isadoctrineoftheutmostimportanceinpoliticaleconomy;
forfromnosourcedosomanyerrors,andsomuchdifferenceofopinioninthatscienceproceed,asfromthevagueideaswhichareattachedtothewordvalue。\"
(Vol。I,p。8)
\"Ifthequantityoflaborrealizedincommoditiesregulatetheirexchangeablevalue,everyincreaseofthequantityoflabormustaugmentthevalueofthatcommodityonwhichitisexercised,aseverydiminutionmustlowerit。\"
(Vol。I,p。8)
RicardogoesontoreproachSmith:
Withhaving\"himselferectedanotherstandardmeasureofvalue\"thanlabor。
\"Sometimeshespeaksofcorn,atothertimesoflabor,asastandardmeasure;
notthequantityoflaborbestowedontheproductionofanyobject,butthequantityitcancommandinthemarket。\"(Vol。I,pp。9and10)
Withhaving\"admittedtheprinciplewithoutqualificationandatthesametimerestricteditsapplicationtothatearlyandrudestateofsociety,whichprecedesboththeaccumulationofstockandtheappropriationofland\"。(Vol。I,p。21)
Ricardosetsouttoprovethattheownershipofland,thatis,groundrent,cannotchangetherelativevalueofcommoditiesandthattheaccumulationofcapitalhasonlyapassingandfluctuationeffectontherelativevaluesdeterminedbythecomparativequantityoflaborexpendedontheirproduction。
Insupportofthisthesis,hegiveshisfamoustheoryofgroundrent,analysescapital,andultimatelyfindsnothinginitbutaccumulatedlabor。Thenhedevelopsawholetheoryofwagesandprofits,andprovesthatwagesandprofitsriseandfallininverseratiotoeachother,withoutaffectingtherelativevalueoftheproduct。Hedoesnotneglecttheinfluencethattheaccumulationofcapitalanditsdifferentaspects(fixedcapitalandcirculatingcapital),asalsotherateofwages,canhaveontheproportionalvalueofproducts。Infact,theyarethechiefproblemswithwhichRicardoisconcerned。
\"Economyintheuseoflaborneverfailstoreducetherelativevalue[2]ofacommodity,whetherthesavingbeinthelabornecessarytothemanufactureofthecommodityitself,orinthatnecessarytotheformationofthecapital,bytheaidofwhichitisproduced。\"
(Vol。I,p。28)
\"Undersuchcircumstancethevalueofthedeer,theproduceofthehunter’sday’slabor,wouldbeexactlyequaltothevalueofthefish,theproduceofthefisherman’sday’slabor。Thecomparativevalueofthefishandthegamewouldbeentirelyregulatedbythequantityoflaborrealizedineach,whatevermightbethequantityofproduction,orhoweverhighorlowgeneralwagesorprofitsmightbe。\"
(Vol。I,p。28)
\"Inmakinglaborthefoundationofthevalueofcommoditiesandthecomparativequantityoflaborwhichisnecessarytotheirproduction,therulewhichdeterminestherespectivequantitiesofgoodswhichshallbegiveninexchangeforeachother,wemustnotbesupposedtodenytheaccidentalandtemporarydeviationsoftheactualormarketpriceofcommoditiesfromthis,theirprimaryandnaturalprice。\"
(Vol。I,p。105,l。c。)
\"Itisthecostofproductionwhichmustultimatelyregulatethepriceofcommodities,andnot,ashasbeenoftensaid,theproportionbetweensupplyanddemand。\"
(Vol。II,p。253)
LordLauderdalehaddevelopedthevariationsofexchangevalueaccordingtothelawofsupplyanddemand,orofscarcityandabundancerelativelytodemand。Inhisopinionthevalueofathingcanincreasewhenitsquantitydecreasesorwhenthedemandforitincreases;itcandecreaseowingtoanincreaseofitsquantityorowingtothedecreaseindemand。Thusthevalueofathingcanchangethrougheightdifferentcauses,namely,fourcausesthatapplytomoneyortoanyothercommoditywhichservesasameasureofitsvalue。HereisRicardo’srefutation:
\"Commoditieswhicharemonopolized,eitherbyanindividual,orbyacompany,varyaccordingtothelawwhichLordLaudersdalehaslaiddown:
theyfallinproportionasthesellersaugmenttheirquantity,andriseinproportiontotheeagernessofthebuyerstopurchasethem;theirpricehasnonecessaryconnexionwiththeirnaturalvalue;butthepricesofcommodities,whicharesubjecttocompetition,andwhosequantitymaybeincreasedinanymoderatedegree,willultimatelydepend,notonthestateofdemandandsupply,butontheincreasedordiminishedcostoftheirproduction。\"
(Vol。II,p。259)
Weshallleaveittothereadertomakethecomparisonbetweenthissimple,clear,preciselanguageofRicardo’sandM。Proudhon’srhetoricalattemptstoarriveatthedeterminationofrelativevaluebylabortime。
Ricardoshowsustherealmovementofbourgeoisproduction,whichconstitutesvalue。M。Proudhon,leavingtherealmovementoutofaccount,\"fumesandfrets\"inordertoinventnewprocessesandtoachievethereorganizationoftheworldonawould—benewformula,whichformulaisnomorethanthetheoreticalexpressionoftherealmovementwhichexistsandwhichissowelldescribedbyRicardo。Ricardotakeshisstartingpointfrompresent—daysocietytodemonstratetoushowitconstitutesvalue——M。Proudhontakesconstitutedvalueashisstartingpointtoconstructanewsocialworldwiththeaidofthisvalue。Forhim,M。Proudhon,constitutedvaluemustmovearoundandbecomeoncemoretheconstitutingfactorinaworldalreadycompletelyconstitutedaccordingtothismodeofevaluation。Thedeterminationofvaluebylabortime,is,forRicardo,thelawofexchangevalue;forM。Proudhon。itisthesynthesisofusevalueandexchangevalue。Ricardo’stheoryofvaluesisthescientificinterpretationofactualeconomiclife;
M。Proudhon’stheoryofvaluesistheutopianinterpretationofRicardo’stheory。Ricardoestablishesthetruthofhisformulabyderivingitfromalleconomicrelations,andbyexplaininginthiswayallphenomena,eventhoselikegroundrent,accumulationofcapitalandtherelationofwagestoprofits,whichatfirstsightseemstocontradictit;itispreciselythatwhichmakeshisdoctrineascientificsystem:M。Proudhon,whohasrediscoveredthisformulaofRicardo’sbymeansofquitearbitraryhypotheses,isforcedthereaftertoseekoutisolatedeconomicfactswhichhetwistsandfalsifiestopassthemoffasexamples,alreadyexistingapplications,beginningofrealizationofhisregeneratingidea。(SeeourS。3。APPLICATION
OFCONSTITUTEDVALUE)
NowletuspassontotheconclusionsM。Proudhondrawsfromvalueconstituted(bylabortime)。
Acertainquantityoflaborisequivalenttotheproductcreatedbythissamequantityoflabor。
Eachday’slaborisworthasmuchasanotherday’slabor;thatistosay,ifthequantitiesareequal,oneman’slaborisworthasmuchasanotherman’slabor:thereisnoqualitativedifference。Withthesamequantityofwork,oneman’sproductcanbegiveninexchangeforanotherman’sproduct。
Allmenarewageworkersgettingequalpayforanequaltimeofwork。Perfectequalityrulestheexchanges。
Aretheseconclusionsthestrict,naturalconsequencesofvalue\"constituted\"
ordeterminedbylabortime?
Iftherelativevalueofacommodityisdeterminedbythequantityoflaborrequiredtoproduceit,itfollowsnaturallythattherelativevalueoflabor,orwages,islikewisedeterminedbythequantityoflaborneededtoproducethewages。Wages,thatis,therelativevalueorthepriceoflabor,arethusdeterminedbythelabortimeneededtoproduceallthatisnecessaryforthemaintenanceoftheworker。
\"Diminishthecostofproductionofhats,andtheirpricewillultimatelyfalltotheirownnewnaturalprice,althoughthedemandshouldbedoubled,trebled,orquadrupled。Diminishthecostofsubsistenceofmen,bydiminishingthenaturalpriceoffoodandclothing,bywhichlifeissustained,andwageswillultimatelyfall,notwithstandingthedemandforlaborersmayverygreatlyincrease。\"
(Ricardo,Vol。II,p。253)
Doubtless,Ricardo’slanguageisascynicalascanbe。Toputthecostofmanufactureofhatsandthecostofmaintenanceofmenonthesameplaneistoturnmenintohats。Butdonotmakeanoutcryatthecynicismofit。Thecynicismisinthefactsandnotinthewordswhichexpressthefacts。FrenchwriterslikeMM。Droz,Blanqui,RossiandotherstakeaninnocentsatisfactioninprovingtheirsuperiorityovertheEnglisheconomists,byseekingtoobservetheetiquetteofa\"humanitarian\"phraseology;iftheyreproachRicardoandhisschoolfortheircynicallanguage,itisbecauseitannoysthemtoseeeconomicrelationsexposedinalltheircrudity,toseethemysteriesofthebourgeoisieunmasked。
Tosumup:Labor,beingitselfacommodity,ismeasuredassuchbythelabortimeneededtoproducethelabor—commodity。Andwhatisneededtoproducethislabor—commodity?Justenoughlabortimetoproducetheobjectsindispensabletotheconstantmaintenanceoflabor,thatis,tokeeptheworkeraliveandinaconditiontopropagatehisrace。Thenaturalpriceoflaborisnootherthanthewageminimum。[3]Ifthecurrentrateofwagesrisesabovethisnaturalprice,itispreciselybecausethelawofvalueputasaprinciplebyM。Proudhonhappenstobecounterbalancedbytheconsequencesofthevaryingrelationsofsupplyanddemand。Buttheminimumwageisnonethelessthecentretowardswhichthecurrentratesofwagesgravitate。
Thusrelativevalue,measuredbylabortime,isinevitablytheformulaofthepresentenslavementoftheworker,insteadofbeing,asM。Proudhonwouldhaveit,the\"revolutionarytheory\"oftheemancipationoftheproletariat。
Letusnowseetowhatextenttheapplicationoflabortimeasameasureofvalueisincompatiblewiththeexistingclassantagonismandtheunequaldistributionoftheproductbetweentheimmediateworkerandtheownerofaccumulatedlabor。
Letustakeaparticularproduct:broadcloth,whichhasrequiredthesamequantityoflaborasthelinen。
Ifthereisanexchangeofthesetwoproducts,thereisanexchangeofequalquantitiesoflabor。Inexchangingtheseequalquantitiesoflabortime,onedoesnotchangethereciprocalpositionoftheproducers,anymorethanonechangesanythinginthesituationoftheworkersandmanufacturersamongthemselves。Tosaythatthisexchangeofproductsmeasuredbylabortimeresultsinanequalityofpaymentforalltheproducersistosupposethatequalityofparticipationintheproductexistedbeforetheexchange。
Whentheexchangeofbroadclothforlinenhasbeenaccomplished,theproducersofbroadclothwillshareinthelineninaproportionequaltothatinwhichtheypreviouslysharedinthebroadcloth。
M。Proudhon’sillusionisbroughtaboutbyhistakingforaconsequencewhatcouldbeatmostbutagratuitoussupposition。
Letusgofurther。
Doeslabortime,asthemeasureofvalue,supposeatleastthatthedaysareequivalent,andthatoneman’sdayisworthasmuchasanother’s?
No。
Letussupposeforamomentthatajeweller’sdayisequivalenttothreedaysofaweaver;thefactremainsthatanychangeinthevalueofjewelsrelativetothatofwovenmaterials,unlessitbethetransitoryresultofthefluctuationsofsupplyanddemand,musthaveasitscauseareductionoranincreaseinthelabortimeexpendedintheproductionofoneortheother。Ifthreeworkingdaysofdifferentworkersberelatedtooneanotherintheratioof1:2:3,theneverychangeintherelativevalueoftheirproductswillbeachangeinthissameproportionof1:2:3。
Thusvaluescanbemeasuredbylabortime,inspiteoftheinequalityofvalueofdifferentworkingdays;buttoapplysuchameasurewemusthaveacomparativescaleofthedifferentworkingdays:itiscompetitionthatsetsupthisscale。
Isyourhour’slaborworthmine?Thatisaquestionwhichisdecidedbycompetition。
Competition,accordingtoanAmericaneconomist,determineshowmanydaysofsimplelaborarecontainedinoneday’scompoundlabor。Doesnotthisreductionofdaysofcompoundlabortodaysofsimplelaborsupposethatsimplelaborisitselftakenasameasureofvalue?Ifthemerequantityoflaborfunctionsasameasureofvalueregardlessofquality,itpresupposesthatsimplelaborhasbecomethepivotofindustry。Itpresupposesthatlaborhasbeenequalizedbythesubordinationofmantothemachineorbytheextremedivisionoflabor;thatmenareeffacedbytheirlabor;
thatthependulumoftheclockhasbecomeasaccurateameasureoftherelativeactivityoftwoworkersasitisofthespeedoftwolocomotives。
Therefore,weshouldnotsaythatoneman’shourisworthanotherman’shour,butratherthatonemanduringanhourisworthjustasmuchasanothermanduringanhour。Timeiseverything,manisnothing;heis,atthemost,time’scarcase。Qualitynolongermatters。Quantityalonedecideseverything;
hourforhour,dayforday;butthisequalizingoflaborisnotbyanymeanstheworkofM。Proudhon’seternaljustice;itispurelyandsimplyafactofmodernindustry。
Intheautomaticworkshop,oneworker’slaborisscarelydistinguishableinanywayfromanotherworker’slabor:workerscanonlybedistinguishedonefromanotherbythelengthoftimetheytakefortheirwork。Nevertheless,thisquantitativedifferencebecomes,fromacertainpointofview,qualitative,inthatthetimetheytakefortheirworkdependspartlyonpurelymaterialcauses,suchasphysicalconstitution,ageandsex;partlyonpurelynegativemoralcauses,suchaspatience,imperturbability,diligence。Inshort,ifthereisadifferenceofqualityinthelaborofdifferentworkers,itisatmostaqualityofthelastkind,whichisfarfrombeingadistinctivespeciality。Thisiswhatthestateofaffairsinmodernindustryamountstointhelastanalysis。Itisuponthisequality,alreadyrealizedinautomaticlabor,thatM。Proudhonwieldshissmoothing—planeof\"equalization\",whichhemeanstoestablishuniversallyin\"timetocome\"!
Allthe\"equalitarian\"consequenceswhichM。ProudhondeducesfromRicardo’sdoctrinearebasedonafundamentalerror。Heconfoundsthevalueofcommoditiesmeasuredbythequantityoflaborembodiedinthemwiththevalueofcommoditiesmeasuredby\"thevalueoflabor\"。Ifthesetwowaysofmeasuringthevalueofcommoditieswereequivalent,itcouldbesaidindifferentlythattherelativevalueofanycommodityismeasuredbythequantityoflaborembodiedinit;orthatitismeasuredbythequantityoflaboritcanbuy;oragainthatitismeasuredbythequantityoflaborwhichcanacquireit。Butthisisfarfrombeingso。
Thevalueoflaborcannomoreserveasameasureofvaluethanthevalueofanyothercommodity。Afewexampleswillsufficetoexplainstillbetterwhatwehavejuststated。
Ifaquarterofwheatcosttwodays’laborinsteadofone,itwouldhavetwiceitsoriginalvalue;butitwouldnotsetinoperationdoublethequantityoflabor,becauseitwouldcontainnomorenutritivematterthanbefore。Thusthevalueofthecorn,measuredbythequantityoflaborusedtoproduceit,wouldhavedoubled;butmeasuredeitherbythequantityoflaboritcanbuyorthequantityoflaborwithwhichitcanbebought,itwouldbefarfromhavingdoubled。Ontheotherhand,ifthesamelaborproducedtwiceasmanyclothesasbefore,theirrelativevaluewouldfallbyhalf;but,nevertheless,thisdoublequantityofclothingwouldnottherebybereducedtodisposingoveronlyhalfthequantityoflabor,norcouldthesamelaborcommandthedoublequantityofclothing;
forhalftheclotheswouldstillgoonrenderingtheworkerthesameserviceasbefore。
Thusitisgoingagainsteconomicfactstodeterminetherelativevalueofcommoditiesbythevalueoflabor。Itismovinginaviciouscircle,itistodeterminerelativevaluebyarelativevaluewhichitselfneedstobedetermined。
ItisbeyonddoubtthatM。Proudhonconfusesthetwomeasures,measurebythelabortimeneededfortheproductionofacommodityandmeasurebythevalueofthelabor。\"Anyman’slabor,\"hesays,\"canbuythevalueitrepresents。\"Thus,accordingtohim,acertainquantityoflaborembodiedinaproductisequivalenttotheworker’spayment,thatis,tothevalueoflabor。Itisthesamereasoningthatmakeshimconfusecostofproductionwithwages。
\"Whatarewages?Theyarethecostpriceofcorn,etc。,theintegralpriceofallthings。\"
Letusgostillfurther。
\"Wagesaretheproportionalityoftheelementswhichcomposewealth。\"
Whatarewages?Theyarethevalueoflabor。
AdamSmithtakesasthemeasureofvalue,nowthetimeoflaborneededfortheproductionofacommodity,nowthevalueoflabor。Ricardoexposesthiserrorbyshowingclearlythedisparityofthesetwowaysofmeasuring。
M。ProudhongoesonebetterthanAdamSmithinerrorbyidentifyingthetwothingswhichthelatterhadmerelyputinjuxtaposition。
Itisinordertofindtheproperpropositioninwhichworkersshouldshareintheproducts,or,inotherwords,todeterminetherelativevalueoflabor,thatM。Proudhonseeksameasurefortherelativevalueofcommodities。Tofindoutthemeasurerelativevalueofcommoditieshecanthinkofnothingbetterthantogiveastheequivalentofacertainquantityoflaborthesumtotaloftheproductsithascreated,whichisasgoodassupposingthatthewholeofsocietyconsistsmerelyofworkerswhoreceivetheirownproduceaswages。Inthesecondplace,hetakesforgrantedtheequivalenceoftheworkingdaysofdifferentworkers。Inshort,heseeksthemeasureoftherelativevalueofcommodities。Whatadmirabledialectics!
\"Sayandtheeconomistsafterhimhaveobservedthatlaborbeingitselfsubjecttovaluation,beingacommoditylikeanyothercommodity,itismovinginaviciouscircletotreatitastheprincipleandthedeterminingcauseofvalue。Insodoing,theseeconomists,iftheywillallowmetosayso,showaprodigiouscarelessness。Laborissaidtohavevaluenotasacommodityitself,butinviewofthevalueswhichitissupposedpotentiallytocontain。Thevalueoflaborisafigurativeexpression,ananticipationofthecausefortheeffect。Itisafictionofthesamestampastheproductivityofcapital。Laborproduces,capitalhasvalue……
Byasortofellipsisonespeaksofthevalueoflabor……
Laborlikeliberty……isathingvagueandindeterminatebynature,butdefinedqualitativelybyitsobject,thatistosay,itbecomesarealitybytheproduct。\"
[I61]
\"Butisthereanyneedtodwellonthis?Themomenttheeconomist(readM。Proudhon)changesthenameofthings,verarerumvocabula[thetruenameofthings],heisimplicitlyconfessinghisimpotenceandproclaiminghimselfnotprivytothecause。\"
(Proudhon,I,188)
WehaveseenthatM。Proudhonmakesthevalueoflaborthe\"determiningcause\"ofthevalueofproductstosuchanextentthatforhimwages,theofficialnameforthe\"valueoflabor\",formtheintegralpriceofallthings:thatiswhySay’sobjectiontroubleshiM。Inlaborasacommodity,whichisagrimreality,heseesnothingbutagrammaticalellipsis。Thusthewholeofexistingsociety,foundedonlaborasacommodity,ishenceforthfoundedonapoeticlicence,afigurativeexpression。Ifsocietywantsto\"eliminateallthedrawbacks\"thatassailit,well,letiteliminatealltheill—soundingterms,changethelanguage;andtothisendithasonlytoapplytotheAcademyforaneweditionofitsdictionary。Afterallthatwehavejustseen,itiseasyforustounderstandwhyM。Proudhon,inaworkonpoliticaleconomy,hastoenteruponlongdissertationsonetymologyandotherpartsofgrammar。Thusheisstilllearnedlydiscussingtheantiquatedderivationofservusfromservare。Thesephilologicaldissertationshaveadeepmeaning,anesotericmeaning——theyformanessentialpartofM。Proudhon’sargument。
Labor[4],inasmuchasitisboughtandsold,isacommoditylikeanyothercommodity,andhas,inconsequence,anexchangevalue。Butthevalueoflabor,orlaborasacommodity,producesaslittleasthevalueofwheat,orwheatasacommodity,servesasfood。
Labor\"isworth\"moreorless,accordingtowhetherfoodcommoditiesaremoreorlessdear,whetherthesupplyanddemandofhandsexisttosuchorsuchadegree,etc。,etc。
Laborisnota\"vaguething\";itisalwayssomedefinitelabor,itisneverlaboringeneralthatisboughtandsold。Itisnotonlylaborthatisqualitativelydefinedbytheobject;butalsotheobjectwhichisdeterminedbythespecificqualityoflabor。
Labor,insofarasitisboughtandsold,isitselfacommodity。