The Economics of Karl Marx
Analysis and Application

An account and technical assessment of Marx's economic analysis in Capital and other documents.

Samuel Hollander (Author)

9780521790789, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 7 April 2008

550 pages, 3 tables
24.1 x 16.2 x 3.5 cm, 0.88 kg

'The detailed arguments are typically first class, and always well presented. … Historians of economic thought will benefit most, but scholars from other disciplines will also find Samuel Hollander's book to be an excellent reference source.' Journal of the History of Economic Thought

Presents an account and technical assessment of Marx's economic analysis in Capital, with particular reference to the transformation and the surplus-value doctrine, the reproduction schemes, the falling real-wage and profit rates, and the trade cycle. The focus is on criticisms that Marx himself might have been expected to face in his day and age. In addition, it offers a chronological study of the evolution of that analysis from the early 1840s through three 'drafts': documents of the late 1840s, the Grundrisse of 1857–1858, and the Economic Manuscripts of 1861–1863. It also provides three studies in application, focusing on Marx's 'evolutionary' orientation in his evaluation of the transition to communism and his rejection of 'egalitarianism' under both capitalist and communist regimes; his evolving perspective on the role of the industrial 'entrepreneur'; and his evolving appreciation of the prospects for welfare reform within capitalism.

Part I. Capital: Principal Features of the Marxian 'Canon': 1. Value and distribution
2. Elements of growth theory
3. Economic growth and the falling real-wage trend
4. Economic growth and the falling rate of profit
5. The cyclical dimension
Part II. Origins: Marx in the 1840s: 6. Marx's economics 1843–1845
7. A 'first draft' of Capital 1847–1849
Part III. A 'Second Draft' of Capital: The Grundrisse 1857–1858: 8. 1857–1858 I: surplus value
9. On value 'realization'
Part IV. A 'Third Draft' of Capital: The Economic Manuscripts 1861–1863: 10. 1861–1863 I: surplus value – profit, rent, and interest
11. 1861–1863 II: sectoral analysis, accumulation, and stability
12. 1861–1863 III: the labor market
Part V. Topics in Application: 13. Economic organization and the equality issue
14. Is there a Marxian 'entrepreneur'? On the functions of the industrial capitalist
15. Principles of social reform
Conclusion: a recapitulation and overview.

Subject Areas: History of science [PDX], Philosophy of science [PDA], Economic history [KCZ], Political economy [KCP], Economic theory & philosophy [KCA], History of ideas [JFCX], Social & political philosophy [HPS], History of Western philosophy [HPC]