Value, Price and Profit

The bad thing about being famous is that people have prejudices about who you are. Word of mouth is often enough for forming an opinion and our time is too limited to stray off-course and verify the truthfulness of the rumours. Given the choice between reading a work of Marx and a book off the New York Times Best Sellers list, which one would you choose?

I needed to read it for myself.

To be honest, I was looking for "Capital: Critique of Political Economy" (or "Das Kapital") but I picked up "Wage Labour and Capital" by mistake (or should I say by ignorance). It was reasonably smaller so I thought, why not, it would be a good prelude to the real thing.

"Wage Labour and Capital" was published almost 20 years before "Capital" in 5 issues of "Neue Rheinische Zeitung" ("New Rheinish Newspaper"). It was based on lectures Marx held in Brussels before the German Workers' Association and it still retains the rhythm of a talk. There are many repetitions and point summaries, the read is an easy one, provided you are in the mood to lead a conversation on the topic.

Marx is not a preacher. He's an explorer, a scientist comparable to those who sailed on the ships to Africa, India, America, Australia. His specialty is society economics and he's meticulously studying all the phenomena involved. It's been said that the better you understand a problem, the simpler your explanation would be for a layman to understand. That's true for "Wage Labour and Capital".

Marx is writing for the workers, he doesn't seek praise how intricate his theories might be, he wants to be understood by the masses. How is the wage formed? What turns money into a capital? Is the rapid development of an industrial sector really good for the workers? There isn't a word about communism/socialism here, he writes about capitalism, taking it apart and examining every part, following different "what if" scenarios. Marx had to terminate the publication but even in its unfinished state this book will change your worldview. ( )

Good introductory text on economics. ( )

One of the most important basic texts for those interested in Marxist thought. This book describes the relationship between capital and labor. Changes the way that you look at your paycheck forever. ( )

A useful, albeit brief, introduction to Marxist economics.