Buteveninsuchcase,thefallinthevalueoflabour—powerwouldcauseacorrespondingriseofsurplus—value,andthustheabyssbetweenthelabourer’spositionandthatofthecapitalistwouldkeepwidening。[3]
Ricardowasthefirstwhoaccuratelyformulatedthethreelawswehaveabovestated。Buthefallsintothefollowingerrors:(1)helooksuponthespecialconditionsunderwhichtheselawsholdgoodasthegeneralandsoleconditionsofcapitalistproduction。Heknowsnochange,eitherinthelengthoftheworking—day,orintheintensityoflabour;consequentlywithhimtherecanbeonlyonevariablefactor,viz。,theproductivenessoflabour;(2),andthiserrorvitiateshisanalysismuchmorethan(1),hehasnot,anymorethanhavetheothereconomists,investigatedsurplus—valueassuch,i。e。,independentlyofitsparticularforms,suchasprofit,rent,&c。Hethereforeconfoundstogetherthelawsoftherateofsurplus—valueandthelawsoftherateofprofit。Therateofprofitis,aswehavealreadysaid,theratioofthesurplus—valuetothetotalcapitaladvanced;therateofsurplus—valueistheratioofthesurplus—valuetothevariablepartofthatcapital。AssumethatacapitalCof£500ismadeupofrawmaterial,instrumentsoflabour,&c。(c)totheamountof£400;
andofwages(v)totheamountof£100;andfurther,thatthesurplus—value(s)=£100。Thenwehaverateofsurplus—values/v=£100/£100
=100%。Buttherateofprofits/c=£100/£500=20%。Itis,besides,obviousthattherateofprofitmaydependoncircumstancesthatinnowayaffecttherateofsurplus—value。IshallshowinBookIII。that,withagivenrateofsurplus—value,wemayhaveanynumberofratesofprofit,andthatvariousratesofsurplus—valuemay,undergivenconditions,expressthemselvesinasinglerateofprofit。
SECTION2WORKING—DAYCONSTANT。PRODUCTIVENESSOFLABOURCONSTANT。INTENSITYOFLABOUR
VARIABLE
Increasedintensityoflabourmeansincreasedexpenditureoflabourinagiventime。Henceaworking—dayofmoreintenselabourisembodiedinmoreproductsthanisoneoflessintenselabour,thelengthofeachdaybeingthesame。Increasedproductivenessoflabouralso,itistrue,willsupplymoreproductsinagivenworking—day。Butinthislattercase,thevalueofeachsingleproductfalls,foritcostslesslabourthanbefore;
intheformercase,thatvalueremainsunchanged,foreacharticlecoststhesamelabourasbefore。Herewehaveanincreaseinthenumberofproducts,unaccompaniedbyafallintheirindividualprices:astheirnumberincreases,sodoesthesumoftheirprices。Butinthecaseofincreasedproductiveness,agivenvalueisspreadoveragreatermassofproducts。Hencethelengthoftheworking—daybeingconstant,aday’slabourofincreasedintensitywillbeincorporatedinanincreasedvalue,and,thevalueofmoneyremainingunchanged,inmoremoney。Thevaluecreatedvarieswiththeextenttowhichtheintensityoflabourdeviatesfromitsnormalintensityinthesociety。
Agivenworking—day,therefore,nolongercreatesaconstant,butavariablevalue;inadayof12hoursofordinaryintensity,thevaluecreatedis,say6shillings,butwithincreasedintensity,thevaluecreatedmaybe7,8,ormoreshillings。Itisclearthat,ifthevaluecreatedbyaday’slabourincreasesfrom,say,6to8shillingsthenthetwopartsintowhichthisvalueisdivided,viz。,priceoflabour—powerandsurplus—value,maybothofthemincreasesimultaneously,andeitherequallyorunequally。
Theymaybothsimultaneouslyincreasefrom3shillingsto4。Here,theriseinthepriceoflabour—powerdoesnotnecessarilyimplythatthepricehasrisenabovethevalueoflabour—power。Onthecontrary,theriseinpricemaybeaccompaniedbyafallinvalue。Thisoccurswhenevertheriseinthepriceoflabour—powerdoesnotcompensateforitsincreasedwearandtear。
Weknowthat,withtransitoryexceptions,achangeintheproductivenessoflabourdoesnotcauseanychangeinthevalueoflabour—power,norconsequentlyinthemagnitudeofsurplus—value,unlesstheproductsoftheindustriesaffectedarearticleshabituallyconsumedbythelabourers。Inthepresentcasethisconditionnolongerapplies。Forwhenthevariationiseitherinthedurationorintheintensityoflabour,thereisalwaysacorrespondingchangeinthemagnitudeofthevaluecreated,independentlyofthenatureofthearticleinwhichthatvalueisembodied。
Iftheintensityoflabourweretoincreasesimultaneouslyandequallyineverybranchofindustry,thenthenewandhigherdegreeofintensitywouldbecomethenormaldegreeforthesociety,andwouldthereforeceasetobetakenaccountof。Butstill,eventhen,theintensityoflabourwouldbedifferentindifferentcountries,andwouldmodifytheinternationalapplicationofthelawofvalue。Themoreintenseworking—dayofonenationwouldberepresentedbyagreatersumofmoneythanwouldthelessintensedayofanothernation。[4]
SECTION3PRODUCTIVENESSANDINTENSITYOFLABOURCONSTANT。LENGTHOFTHEWORKING—DAY
VARIABLE
Theworking—daymayvaryintwoways。Itmaybemadeeitherlongerorshorter。Fromourpresentdata,andwithinthelimitsoftheassumptionsmadeon[previously]weobtainthefollowinglaws:
(1。)Theworking—daycreatesagreaterorlessamountofvalueinproportiontoitslength?thus,avariableandnotaconstantquantityofvalue。
(2。)Everychangeintherelationbetweenthemagnitudesofsurplusvalueandofthevalueoflabour—powerarisesfromachangeintheabsolutemagnitudeofthesurplus—labour,andconsequentlyofthesurplus—value。
(3。)Theabsolutevalueoflabour—powercanchangeonlyinconsequenceofthereactionexercisedbytheprolongationofsurplus—labouruponthewearandtearoflabour—power。Everychangeinthisabsolutevalueisthereforetheeffect,butneverthecause,ofachangeinthemagnitudeofsurplus—value。
Webeginwiththecaseinwhichtheworking—dayisshortened。
(1。)Ashorteningoftheworking—dayundertheconditionsgivenabove,leavesthevalueoflabour—power,andwithit,thenecessarylabour—time,unaltered。Itreducesthesurplus—labourandsurplus—value。Alongwiththeabsolutemagnitudeofthelatter,itsrelativemagnitudealsofalls,i。e。,itsmagnituderelativelytothevalueoflabour—powerwhosemagnituderemainsunaltered。Onlybyloweringthepriceoflabour—powerbelowitsvaluecouldthecapitalistsavehimselfharmless。
Alltheusualargumentsagainsttheshorteningoftheworking—day,assumethatittakesplaceundertheconditionswehaveheresupposedtoexist;
butinrealitytheverycontraryisthecase:achangeintheproductivenessandintensityoflaboureitherprecedes,orimmediatelyfollows,ashorteningoftheworking—day。[5]
(2。)Lengtheningoftheworking—day。Letthenecessarylabour—timebe6hours,orthevalueoflabour—power3shillings;alsoletthesurplus—labourbe6hoursorthesurplus—value3shillings。Thewholeworking—daythenamountsto12hoursandisembodiedinavalueof6shillings。If,now,theworking—daybelengthenedby2hoursandthepriceoflabour—powerremainunaltered,thesurplus—valueincreasesbothabsolutelyandrelatively。
Althoughthereisnoabsolutechangeinthevalueoflabour—power,itsuffersarelativefall。Undertheconditionsassumedin1。therecouldnotbeachangeofrelativemagnitudeinthevalueoflabour—powerwithoutachangeinitsabsolutemagnitude。Here,onthecontrary,thechangeofrelativemagnitudeinthevalueoflabour—poweristheresultofthechangeofabsolutemagnitudeinsurplus—value。
Sincethevalueinwhichaday’slabourisembodied,increaseswiththelengthofthatday,itisevidentthatthesurplus—valueandthepriceoflabour—powermaysimultaneouslyincrease,eitherbyequalorunequalquantities。Thissimultaneousincreaseisthereforepossibleintwocases,one,theactuallengtheningoftheworking—day,theother,anincreaseintheintensityoflabourunaccompaniedbysuchlengthening。
Whentheworking—dayisprolonged,thepriceoflabour—powermayfallbelowitsvalue,althoughthatpricebenominallyunchangedorevenrise。
Thevalueofaday’slabour—poweris,aswillberemembered,estimatedfromitsnormalaverageduration,orfromthenormaldurationoflifeamongthelabourers,andfromcorrespondingnormaltransformationsoforganisedbodilymatterintomotion,[6]inconformitywiththenatureofman。Uptoacertainpoint,theincreasedwearandtearoflabour—power,inseparablefromalengthenedworking—day,maybecompensatedbyhigherwages。Butbeyondthispointthewearandtearincreasesingeometricalprogression,andeveryconditionsuitableforthenormalreproductionandfunctioningoflabour—powerissuppressed。
Thepriceoflabour—powerandthedegreeofitsexploitationceasetobecommensurablequantities。
SECTION4SIMULTANEOUSVARIATIONSINTHEDURATION,PRODUCTIVENESS,ANDINTENSITY
OFLABOUR
Itisobviousthatalargenumberofcombinationsareherepossible。
Anytwoofthefactorsmayvaryandthethirdremainconstant,orallthreemayvaryatonce。Theymayvaryeitherinthesameorindifferentdegrees,inthesameorinoppositedirections,withtheresultthatthevariationscounteractoneanother,eitherwhollyorinpart。NeverthelesstheanalysisofeverypossiblecaseiseasyinviewoftheresultsgiveninI。,II。,andIII。Theeffectofeverypossiblecombinationmaybefoundbytreatingeachfactorinturnasvariable,andtheothertwoconstantforthetimebeing。Weshall,therefore,notice,andthatbriefly,buttwoimportantcases。
A。Diminishingproductivenessoflabourwithasimultaneouslengtheningoftheworking—day。Inspeakingofdiminishingproductivenessoflabour,wehererefertodiminutioninthoseindustrieswhoseproductsdeterminethevalueoflabour—power;
suchadiminution,forexample,asresultsfromdecreasingfertilityofthesoil,andfromthecorrespondingdearnessofitsproducts。Taketheworking—dayat12hoursandthevaluecreatedbyitat6shillings,ofwhichonehalfreplacesthevalueofthelabour—power,theotherformsthesurplus—value。Suppose,inconsequenceoftheincreaseddearnessoftheproductsofthesoil,thatthevalueoflabour—powerrisesfrom3shillingsto4,andthereforethenecessarylabour—timefrom6hoursto8。Iftherebenochangeinthelengthoftheworking—day,thesurplus—labourwouldfallfrom6hoursto4,thesurplus—valuefrom3shillingsto2。Ifthedaybelengthenedby2hours,i。e。,from12hoursto14,thesurplus—labourremainsat6hours,thesurplus—valueat6shillings,butthesurplus—valuedecreasescomparedwiththevalueoflabour—power,asmeasuredbythenecessarylabour—time。Ifthedaybelengthenedby4hours,viz。,from12hoursto16,theproportionalmagnitudesofsurplus—valueandvalueoflabour—power,ofsurplus—labourandnecessarylabour,continueunchanged,buttheabsolutemagnitudeofsurplus—valuerisesfrom3shillingsto4,thatofthesurplus—labourfrom6hoursto8,anincrementof331/3%。Therefore,withdiminishingproductivenessoflabourandasimultaneouslengtheningoftheworking—day,theabsolutemagnitudeofsurplus—valuemaycontinueunaltered,atthesametimethatitsrelativemagnitudediminishes;itsrelativemagnitudemaycontinueunchanged,atthesametimethatitsabsolutemagnitudeincreases;
and,providedthelengtheningofthedaybesufficient,bothmayincrease。
Intheperiodbetween1799and1815theincreasingpriceofprovisionsledinEnglandtoanominalriseinwages,althoughtherealwages,expressedinthenecessariesoflife,fell。FromthisfactWestandRicardodrewtheconclusion,thatthediminutionintheproductivenessofagriculturallabourhadbroughtaboutafallintherateofsurplus—value,andtheymadethisassumptionofafactthatexistedonlyintheirimaginations,thestarting—pointofimportantinvestigationsintotherelativemagnitudesofwages,profits,andrent。But,asamatteroffact,surplus—valuehadatthattime,thankstotheincreasedintensityoflabour,andtotheprolongationoftheworking—day,increasedbothinabsoluteandrelativemagnitude。
Thiswastheperiodinwhichtherighttoprolongthehoursoflabourtoanoutrageousextentwasestablished;[7]theperiodthatwasespeciallycharacterisedbyanacceleratedaccumulationofcapitalhere,bypauperismthere。[8]
B。Increasingintensityandproductivenessoflabourwithsimultaneousshorteningoftheworking—day。Increasedproductivenessandgreaterintensityoflabour,bothhavealikeeffect。Theybothaugmentthemassofarticlesproducedinagiventime。
Both,therefore,shortenthatportionoftheworking—daywhichthelabourerneedstoproducehismeansofsubsistenceortheirequivalent。Theminimumlengthoftheworking—dayisfixedbythisnecessarybutcontractileportionofit。Ifthewholeworking—dayweretoshrinktothelengthofthisportion,surplus—labourwouldvanish,aconsummationutterlyimpossibleundertherégimeofcapital。Onlybysuppressingthecapitalistformofproductioncouldthelengthoftheworking—daybereducedtothenecessarylabour—time。
But,eveninthatcase,thelatterwouldextenditslimits。Ontheonehand,becausethenotionof"meansofsubsistence"wouldconsiderablyexpand,andthelabourerwouldlayclaimtoanaltogetherdifferentstandardoflife。Ontheotherhand,becauseapartofwhatisnowsurplus—labour,wouldthencountasnecessarylabour;Imeanthelabourofformingafundforreserveandaccumulation。
Themoretheproductivenessoflabourincreases,themorecantheworking—daybeshortened;andthemoretheworking—dayisshortened,themorecantheintensityoflabourincrease。Fromasocialpointofview,theproductivenessincreasesinthesameratioastheeconomyoflabour,which,initsturn,includesnotonlyeconomyofthemeansofproduction,butalsotheavoidanceofalluselesslabour。Thecapitalistmodeofproduction,whileontheonehand,enforcingeconomyineachindividualbusiness,ontheotherhand,begets,byitsanarchicalsystemofcompetition,themostoutrageoussquanderingoflabour—powerandofthesocialmeansofproduction,nottomentionthecreationofavastnumberofemployments,atpresentindispensable,butinthemselvessuperfluous。
Theintensityandproductivenessoflabourbeinggiven,thetimewhichsocietyisboundtodevotetomaterialproductionisshorter,andasaconsequence,thetimeatitsdisposalforthefreedevelopment,intellectualandsocial,oftheindividualisgreater,inproportionastheworkismoreandmoreevenlydividedamongalltheable—bodiedmembersofsociety,andasaparticularclassismoreandmoredeprivedofthepowertoshiftthenaturalburdenoflabourfromitsownshoulderstothoseofanotherlayerofsociety。Inthisdirection,theshorteningoftheworking—dayfindsatlastalimitinthegeneralisationoflabour。Incapitalistsocietysparetimeisacquiredforoneclassbyconvertingthewholelife—timeofthemassesintolabour—time。
Footnotes[1]Noteinthe3rdGermanedition。?Thecaseconsideredatpages300—302
ishereofcourseomitted。?F。E。
[2]TothisthirdlawMacCullochhasmade,amongstothers,thisabsurdaddition,thatariseinsurplus—value,unaccompaniedbyafallinthevalueoflabour—power,canoccurthroughtheabolitionoftaxespayablebythecapitalist。Theabolitionofsuchtaxesmakesnochangewhateverinthequantityofsurplus—valuethatthecapitalistextortsatfirst—handfromthelabourer。Italtersonlytheproportioninwhichthatsurplus—valueisdividedbetweenhimselfandthirdpersons。Itconsequentlymakesnoalterationwhateverintherelationbetweensurplus—valueandvalueoflabour—power。MacCulloch’sexceptionthereforeprovesonlyhismisapprehensionoftherule,amisfortunethatasoftenhappenstohiminthevulgarisationofRicardo,asitdoestoJ。B。SayinthevulgarisationofAdamSmith。
[3]"Whenanalterationtakesplaceintheproductivenessofindustry,andthateithermoreorlessisproducedbyagivenquantityoflabourandcapital,theproportionofwagesmayobviouslyvary,whilstthequantity,whichthatproportionrepresents,remainsthesame,orthequantitymayvary,whilsttheproportionremainsthesame。"("OutlinesofPoliticalEconomy,&c。,"p。67。)
[4]"Allthingsbeingequal,theEnglishmanufacturercanturnoutaconsiderablylargeramountofworkinagiventimethanaforeignmanufacturer,somuchastocounterbalancethedifferenceoftheworking—days,between60hoursaweekhere,and72or80elsewhere。"(Rep。ofInsp。ofFact。for31stOct。,1855,p。65。)ThemostinfalliblemeansforreducingthisqualitativedifferencebetweentheEnglishandContinentalworkinghourwouldbealawshorteningquantitativelythelengthoftheworking—dayinContinentalfactories。
[5]"Therearecompensatingcircumstances……whichtheworkingoftheTenHours’Acthasbroughttolight。"(Rep。ofInsp。ofFact。for31stOct。1848,"
p。7。)
[6]"Theamountoflabourwhichamanhadundergoneinthecourseof24hoursmightbeapproximatelyarrivedatbyanexaminationofthechemicalchangeswhichhadtakenplaceinhisbody,changedformsinmatterindicatingtheanteriorexerciseofdynamicforce。"(Grove:"OntheCorrelationofPhysicalForces。")
[7]"Cornandlabourrarelymarchquiteabreast;butthereisanobviouslimit,beyondwhichtheycannotbeseparated。Withregardtotheunusualexertionsmadebythelabouringclassesinperiodsofdearness,whichproducethefallofwagesnoticedintheevidence"(namely,beforetheParliamentaryCommitteeofInquiry,1814—15),"theyaremostmeritoriousintheindividuals,andcertainlyfavourthegrowthofcapital。Butnomanofhumanitycouldwishtoseethemconstantandunremitted。Theyaremostadmirableasatemporaryrelief;butiftheywereconstantlyinaction,effectsofasimilarkindwouldresultfromthem,asfromthepopulationofacountrybeingpushedtotheveryextremelimitsofitsfood。"(Malthus:"InquiryintotheNatureandProgressofRent,"Lond。,1815,p。48,note。)AllhonourtoMalthusthathelaysstressonthelengtheningofthehoursoflabour,afacttowhichheelsewhereinhispamphletdrawsattention,whileRicardoandothers,infaceofthemostnotoriousfacts,makeinvariabilityinthelengthoftheworking—daythegroundworkofalltheirinvestigations。
Buttheconservativeinterests,whichMalthusserved,preventedhimfromseeingthatanunlimitedprolongationoftheworking—day,combinedwithanextraordinarydevelopmentofmachinery,andtheexploitationofwomenandchildren,mustinevitablyhavemadeagreatportionoftheworking—class"supernumerary,"particularlywheneverthewarshouldhaveceased,andthemonopolyofEnglandinthemarketsoftheworldshouldhavecometoanend。Itwas,ofcourse,farmoreconvenient,andmuchmoreinconformitywiththeinterestsoftherulingclasses,whomMalthusadoredlikeatruepriest,toexplainthis"over—population"bytheeternallawsofNature,ratherthanbythehistoricallawsofcapitalistproduction。
[8]"Aprincipalcauseoftheincreaseofcapital,duringthewar,proceededfromthegreaterexertions,andperhapsthegreaterprivationsofthelabouringclasses,themostnumerousineverysociety。Morewomenandchildrenwerecompelledbynecessitouscircumstances,toenteruponlaboriousoccupations,andformerworkmenwere,fromthesamecause,obligedtodevoteagreaterportionoftheirtimetoincreaseproduction。"(EssaysonPol。Econ。,inwhichareillustratedtheprincipalcausesofthepresentnationaldistress。
Lond。,1830,p。248。)
ChapterEighteenKarlMarxCapitalVolumeOnePartV:
TheProductionofAbsoluteandofRelativeSurplus—ValueCHAPTEREIGHTEEN:
VARIOUSFORMULAFORTHERATEOFSURPLUS—VALUEWehaveseenthattherateofsurplus—valueisrepresentedbythefollowingformulae:Surplus—value(s)Surplus—valueSurplus—laborI。棗棗棗棗棗==棗棗棗棗棗==棗棗棗?;VariableCapital(v;Valueoflabor—powe;NecessarylaborThetwofirstoftheseformulaerepresent,asaratioofvalues,thatwhich,inthethird,isrepresentedasaratioofthetimesduringwhichthosevaluesareproduced。Theseformulae,supplementarytheonetotheother,arerigorouslydefiniteandcorrect。Wethereforefindthemsubstantially,butnotconsciously,workedoutinclassicalPoliticalEconomy。Therewemeetwiththefollowingderivativeformulae。Surplus—laborSurplus—valueSurplus—productII。棗棗棗?==棗棗棗棗棗==棗棗棗棗—;Working—da;ValueoftheProduc;TotalProductOneandthesameratioishereexpressedasaratiooflabor—times,ofthevaluesinwhichthoselabor—timesareembodied,andoftheproductsinwhichthosevaluesexist。Itisofcourseunderstoodthat,by"ValueoftheProduct",ismeantonlythevaluenewlycreatedinaworking—day,theconstantpartofthevalueoftheproductbeingexcluded。
Inalloftheseformulae(II。),theactualdegreeofexploitationoflabor,ortherateofsurplus—value,isfalselyexpressed。Lettheworking—daybe12hours。Then,makingthesameassumptionsasinformerinstances,therealdegreeofexploitationoflaborwillberepresentedinthefollowingproportions。6hourssurplus—laborSurplus—valueof3sh。
棗棗棗棗棗?==棗棗棗棗棗棗?==100%。
6hoursnecessarylabp;VariableCapitalof3sh。FromformulaeII。wegetverydifferently,6hourssurplus—laborSurplus—valueof3sh。
棗棗棗棗棗?==棗棗棗棗棗棗?==50%。
Working—dayof12houp;Valuecreatedof6sh。
Thesederivativeformulaeexpress,inreality,onlytheproportioninwhichtheworking—day,orthevalueproducedbyit,isdividedbetweencapitalistandlaborer。Iftheyaretobetreatedasdirectexpressionsofthedegreeofself—expansionofcapital,thefollowingerroneouslawwouldholdgood:Surplus—labororsurplus—valuecanneverreach100%。[1]Sincethesurplus—laborisonlyanaliquotpartoftheworking—day,orsincesurplus—valueisonlyanaliquotpartofthevaluecreated,thesurplus—labormustnecessarilybealwayslessthantheworking—day,orthesurplus—valuealwayslessthanthetotalvaluecreated。Inorder,however,toattaintheratioof100:100theymustbeequal。Inorderthatthesurplus—labormayabsorbthewholeday(i。e。,anaveragedyofanyweekoryear),thenecessarylabormustsinktozero。Butifthenecessarylaborvanish,sotoodoesthesurplus—labor,sinceitisonlyafunctionoftheformer。
TheratioSurplus—laborSurplus—value棗棗棗?;o;棗棗棗?p;Working—dp;Valuecreatedcanthereforeneverreachthelimit100/100,stilllessriseto100x/100。
Butnotsotherateofsurplus—value,therealdegreeofexploitationoflabor。Take,e。g。,theestimateofL。deLavergne,accordingtowhichtheEnglishagriculturallaborergetsonly1/4,thecapitalist(farmer)ontheotherhand3/4oftheproduct[2]oritsvalue,apartfromthequestionofhowthebootyissubsequentlydividedbetweenthecapitalist,thelandlord,andothers。Accordingtothis,thissurplus—laboroftheEnglishagriculturallaboreristohisnecessarylaboras3:1,whichgivesarateofexploitationof300%。
Thefavoritemethodoftreatingtheworking—dayasconstantinmagnitudebecame,throughtheuseofformulaeII。,afixedusage,becauseinthemsurplus—laborisalwayscomparedwithaworking—dayofgivenlength。Thesameholdsgoodwhentherepartitionofthevalueproducedisexclusivelykeptinsight。Theworking—daythathasalreadybeenrealizedingivenvalue,mustnecessarilybeadayofgivenlength。
Thehabitofrepresentingsurplus—valueandvalueoflabor—powerasfractionsofthevaluecreated?ahabitthatoriginatesinthecapitalistmodeofproductionitself,andwhoseimportwillhereafterbedisclosed?concealstheverytransactionthatcharacterizescapital,namelytheexchangeofvariablecapitalforlivinglabor—power,andtheconsequentexclusionofthelaborerfromtheproduct。Insteadoftherealfact,wehavefalsesemblanceofanassociation,inwhichlaborerandcapitalistdividetheproductinproportiontothedifferentelementswhichtheyrespectivelycontributetowardsitsformatiop;[3]Moreover,theformulaeII。canatanytimebereconvertedintoformulaeI。If,forinstance,wehaveSurplus—laborof6hours棗棗棗棗棗棗?;Working—dayof12hoursthenthenecessarylabor—timebeing12hourslessthesurplus—laborof6hours,wegetthefollowingresult,Surplus—laborof6hours100棗棗棗棗棗棗棗==?。;Necessarylaborof6hour;100ThereisathirdformulawhichIhaveoccassionallyalreadyanticipated;itisSurplus—valueSurplus—laborUnpaidlaborIII。棗棗棗棗棗==棗棗棗棗—==棗棗棗?;Valueoflabor—powe;Necessarylabo;PaidlaborAftertheinvestigationswehavegivenabove,itisnolongerpossibletobemisled,bytheformulaUnpaidlabor棗棗棗?;Paidlaborintoconcluding,thatthecapitalistpaysforlaborandnotforlabor—power。
ThisformulaisonlyapopularexpressionforSurplus—labor棗棗棗棗—。
NecessarylaborThecapitalistpaysthevalue,sofaraspricecoincideswithvalue,ofthelabor—power,andreceivesinexchangethedisposalofthelivinglabor—poweritself。Hisusufructisspreadovertwoperiods。Duringonethelaborerproducesavaluethatisonlyequaltothevalueofhislabor—power;
heproducesitsequivalent。Thisthecapitalistreceivesinreturnforhisadvanceofthepriceofthelabor—power,aproductreadymadeinthemarket。Duringtheotherperiod,theperiodofsurplus—labor,theusufructofthelabor—powercreatesavalueforthecapitalist,thatcostshimnoequivalent。[4]Thisexpenditureoflabor—powercomestohimgratis。Inthissenseitisthatsurplus—laborcanbecalledunpaidlabor。
Capital,therefore,itnotonly,asAdamSmithsays,thecommandoverlabor。Itisessentiallythecommandoverunpaidlabor。Allsurplus—value,whateverparticularform(profit,interest,orrent),itmaysubsequentlycrystallizeinto,isinsubstancethematerializationofunpaidlabor。
Thesecretoftheself—expansionofcapitalresolvesitselfintohavingthedisposalofadefinitequantityofotherpeople’sunpaidlabor。
Footnotes[1]Thus,e。g。,in"DritterBriefanv。KirchmannvonRodbertus。WiderlegungderRicardo’schenLehrevonderGrundrenteundBegrundungeinerneuenRententheorie"。
Berlin,1851。Ishallreturntothisletterlateron;inspiteofitserroneoustheoryofrent,itseesthroughthenatureofcapitalistproduction。
NOTEADDEDINTHE3RDGERMANEDITION:ItmaybeseenfromthishowfavorablyMarxjudgedhispredecessors,wheneverhefoundinthemrealprogress,ornewandsoundideas。ThesubsequentpublicationsofRobertus’letterstoRud。MeyerhasshownthattheaboveacknowledgementbyMarxwantsrestrictingtosomeextent。Inthoselettersthispassageoccurs:
"Capitalmustberescuednotonlyfromlabor,butfromitself,andthatwillbebesteffected,bytreatingtheactsoftheindustrialcapitalistaseconomicandpoliticalfunctions,thathavebeendelegatedtohimwithhiscapital,andbytreatinghisprofitasaformofsalary,becausewestillknownoothersocialorganization。Butsalariesmayberegulated,andmayalsobereducediftheytaketoomuchfromwages。TheirruptionofMarxintoSociety,asImaycallhisbook,mustbewardedoff……Altogether,Marx’sbookisnotsomuchaninvestigationintocapital,asapolemicagainstthepresentformofcapital,aformwhichheconfoundswiththeconceptitselfofcapital。"
("Briefe,&c。,vonDr。Robertus—Jagetzow,herausgg。vonDr。Rud。
Meyer",Berlin,1881,I,Bd。P。111,46。BreifvonRodbertus。)TosuchideologicalcommonplacesdidtheboldattackbyRobertusinhis"socialletters"finallydwindledown。?F。E。
[2]Thatpartoftheproductwhichmerelyreplacestheconstantcapitaladvancedisofcourseleftoutinthiscalculation。Mr。L。deLavergne,ablindadmirerofEngland,isinclinedtoestimatetheshareofthecapitalisttoolow,ratherthantoohigh。
[3]Allwell—developedformsofcapitalistproductionbeingformsofcooperation,nothingis,ofcourse,easier,thantomakeabstractionfromtheirantagonisticcharacter,andtotransformthembyawordintosomeformoffreeassociation,asisdonebyA。deLabordein"Del’Espiritd’Associationdanstoutlesinteretsdelacommunaute"。Paris1818。H。Carey,theYankee,occassionallyperformsthisconjuringtrickwithlikesuccess,evenwiththerelationsresultingfromslavery。
[4]AlthoughthePhysiocratscouldnotpenetratethemysteryofsurplus—value,yetthismuchwascleartothem,viz。,thatitis"unerichesseindependanteetdisponiblequ’il(thepossessor)n’apointacheteeetqu’ilvend。"(Turgot:
"ReflexionssurlaFormationetlaDistributiondesRichesses",p。11。)
ChapterNineteenKarlMarxCapitalVolumeOnePartVI:
WagesCHAPTERNINETEEN:
THETRANSFORMATIONOFTHEVALUE(ANDRESPECTIVEPRICE)OFLABOUR—POWER
INTOWAGES
Onthesurfaceofbourgeoissocietythewageofthelabourerappearsasthepriceoflabour,acertainquantityofmoneythatispaidforacertainquantityoflabour。Thuspeoplespeakofthevalueoflabourandcallitsexpressioninmoneyitsnecessaryornaturalprice。Ontheotherhandtheyspeakofthemarket—pricesoflabour,i。e。,pricesoscillatingaboveorbelowitsnaturalprice。
Butwhatisthevalueofacommodity?Theobjectiveformofthesociallabourexpendedinitsproduction。Andhowdowemeasurethequantityofthisvalue?Bythequantityofthelabourcontainedinit。Howthenisthevalue,e。g。,ofa12hourworking—daytobedetermined?。Bythe12
working—hourscontainedinaworking—dayof12hours,whichisanabsurdtautology。[1]
Inordertobesoldasacommodityinthemarket,labourmustatalleventsexistbeforeitissold。But,couldthelabourergiveitanindependentobjectiveexistence,hewouldsellacommodityandnotlabour。[2]
Apartfromthesecontradictions,adirectexchangeofmoney,i。e。,ofrealizedlabour,withlivinglabourwouldeitherdoawaywiththelawofvaluewhichonlybeginstodevelopitselffreelyonthebasisofcapitalistproduction,ordoawaywithcapitalistproductionitself,whichrestsdirectlyonwage—labour。Theworking—dayof12hoursembodiesitself,e。g。,inamoney—valueof6s。Eitherequivalentsareexchanged,andthenthelabourerreceives6s,for12hours’labour;thepriceofhislabourwouldbeequaltothepriceofhisproduct。Inthiscaseheproducesnosurplus—valueforthebuyerofhislabour,the6s。arenottransformedintocapital,thebasisofcapitalistproductionvanishes。Butitisonthisverybasisthathesellshislabourandthathislabouriswage—labour。Orelsehereceivesfor12hours’labourlessthan6s。,i。e。,lessthan12hours’
第44章