Surplus value isLabor process"Value added".Obviously, this "value-added" is not that "value-added", but it determineseconomic phenomena Price and profit growth trends in the sector.[1]
aboutSurplus value theoryMarx gave a general comment: "All economists made a mistake: they did not study surplus value in terms of its pure form, not in terms of surplus value itself, but in terms of special forms such as profit and rent."[1]
Although there has been partial temporary surplus, the overall social production is in short supply.
Under such historical conditions, the main basic means adopted by the capitalists in order to earn more profits is to force workers to work for a long time and with high intensity.This kind of high pressure method naturally caused the resistance of workers, even resistance.
Under such a historical background, Marx put forward the theory of surplus value, whose basic viewpoints are:
(1) Capitalists pay wages to workers, and after purchasing workers' labor force, they force workers to work for them for a long time, thus money is converted into capital;
(2) The total capital of the capitalists is divided into two parts. One part is used to purchase the labor force of workers, which is called“Variable capital”Its value is variable in the production process and can be increased through workers' labor;The other part is used to purchase machinery, equipment, raw materials, fuels, etc., which is called "constant capital". In the production process, its value is unchanged, but the original value is transferred to new products;
(3) The total labor time of workers is divided into two parts, one is called "necessary labor time", which is used to reproduce the labor value of workers, and the other is called "surplus labor time", which is used to create new value;
(4) The new value created by workers in the remaining labor time is called surplus value;
(5) Surplus value was originally the product of workers' labor and should be owned by workers, but it was monopolized by capitalists free of charge by virtue of their ownership of the enterprise, which is the secret of capitalists exploiting workers to get rich;
(6) In order to strengthen the exploitation of workers and earn more surplus value, capitalists have taken two basic ways:
One is to force workers to extend their working hours, or force workers to increase their labor intensity, so as to absolutely increase the surplus labor time. This method is called "absolute surplus value";
The second is to shorten the necessary labor time through technological progress, that is, shorten the time for workers to reproduce the value of labor force, and relatively extend the surplus labor time. This method is called extracting "relative surplus value";
(7) Profit, interest, land rent and commercialtransportation, finance, insurance, service industry, etcIndustrial sectorThe income of employees is transformed from the surplus value created by industrial workers.
There are two cores of the above surplus value theory:
(1) Capitalists mainly earn profits by forcing workers to extend their working hours;
(2) Only the living labor of industrial workers can create new value, othersproduction factorsAnd commercial service industryunproductiveEmployees in the industry cannot create new value.This was basically in line with the facts in the 19th century, and because of this, the theory of surplus value was widely spread and widely recognized throughout the world.
Contention of opinions
Surplus value theoryThe exact meaning of "Theory of Surplus Value", after careful investigation of various occasions where "surplus value" appears, is found that its meaning is not uniform, there are at least two kinds:
The first is that from the perspective of value creators, "surplus value" is a concept opposite to "self use value", which refers to the part of value created by workers that exceeds their own and family needs;
The second is that if the value created by the laborer is not enough or only enough to meet the needs of himself and his family, and there is no surplus, he will not create surplus value.If the value created by a worker is not equal to his salary, he will not create surplus value. Only when he creates more value than his salary can he create surplus value.
Marx said: Surplus value is the value created by hired workers and occupied by capitalists free of charge, which exceeds the value of labor force.
The surplus value here, that is, the surplus value of capitalism, is essentially the part of the value created by workers that exceeds their own and family needs, because the value of labor force is determined by the cost of means of subsistence needed to maintain the production and reproduction of labor force, including the cost of training and education of workers themselves and the cost of maintaining the life of their family members,This is precisely the value created by workers in their own and family needs - self use value.
Therefore, the old and new interpretations of surplus value are essentially the same, and the difference only lies in:
First, Marx stoodcapitalist society The essence of capitalist production is revealed by analyzing and explaining the essence of surplus value production in capitalist society based on the position of class opposition;
Second, the new interpretation is to interpret surplus value from a broader concept, which is universalApplicability, which can explain all the surplus value relative to the self use value.
The second meaning of surplus value is that, from the perspective of the carrier of value, it is the concept opposite to "used value", which refers to the value left after the use of goods.This meaning is not as common as the first one, but it also appears in TV, newspapers, books and daily life.
For example, before 8:00 a.m. on December 12, 2000,CCTVOf“Oriental Space Time”The program once reported that someone recycled“E-waste”Good results have been achieved through reuse. In particular, an Indian man used this to assemble a motorcycle, which means the "surplus value" of waste utilization. The "surplus value" here obviously does not mean the value created by workers that exceeds their own and family needs, but the value left after the use of goods.
We sometimes hear people refer to the reuse of waste water as the surplus value of used water, and the recycling of waste materials and wastes as the surplus value of used goods. This "surplus value" also refers to the residual value of goods after use.
Surplus value and value surplus
The two meanings of "surplus value" are the value created by people and the value of the goods themselvescontextIt is easy to identify what it means.
Because the first meaning is very common and the second meaning is relatively rare, we mainly discuss the residual value based on the first meaning.
From this perspective, we can see that the surplus production does not only exist incapitalist society , various histories after the end of primitive societyDevelopment stageAre always there.
surplus value
Another understanding: from modern timesinformation science、system science From the perspective of, the world consists of three elements: material, energy and information, and the value of commodities also consists of these three elements.To produce a commodity, we need to consume a certain amount of material and energy, and more importantly, we need the knowledge to produce this commodity.If the unit commodity consumes 3 yuan of material value and 3 yuan of energy value, it is necessary to produce this commodityKnowledge value3 yuan, the value of the unit commodity is 9 yuan.WhenRepetitive productionFor this product,ValueAdded value.The value of the second unit commodity is still 9 yuan, but the actual material consumption is 3 yuan+the actual energy consumption is 3 yuan, totaling 6 yuan. Because the production of the first commodity already has the knowledge to produce this commodity, the knowledge can be shared, and there is no actual consumption. As a result, the value added is 3 yuan, and the input value is 6 yuan. The result value is 9 yuan.The three yuan are generated by knowledgeValue addedIs the real surplus value.
In fact,New Institutional EconomicsOfIncomplete contractThe theory is equivalent to the "surplus value theory" in terms of status, which means that workers can not figure out their own "surplus", which is actually the last of the managementcontrol powerIt does not belong to workers.That is to say, workers are rightLabor processNo final control.This is a fact of a commodity society, which Marx called“Surplus value theory”。[2]
In a narrow sense,capitalistic enterpriseIt is directly stipulated as the capitalist's control mode of production and labor contract in a capitalist labor process, which makes special use of the market labor contract.[2]
Production mode
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Development history
Primitive societyearly stage,productivityThe level is very low. The value created by workers cannot meet the needs of themselves and their families. People are starving for many times, so it is difficult to create surplus value.
At the end of the primitive society, due to the development of productive forces, the value created by the workers, in addition to meeting their own and family needs, still had a small amount of surplus, so they could produce a small amount of surplus value.
The generation of surplus valuesocial developmentIt had a great impact. The most obvious thing is that the winner of the war no longer killed the prisoners of war, but used them as slaves for himselfProduction surplus value。
feudal societyThe production of surplus value is widespread, and the land rent collected by landlords and various kinds of national incometaxes and leviesThey all come from the surplus value created by farmers and other workers.
As we all know, the essence of capitalist production is the production of surplus value.capitalismCorporate profits and nationalrevenueAll come from the surplus value created by workers and other workers.
socialist society As discussed above, there is a wide range of surplus value production, and in the futureCommunist society, will be even more inseparable from the production of surplus value, because there will be more types of occupations,Social division of laborWill be more detailed and more people will leaveMaterial production departmentAnd engaged in culture, education, healthpublic serviceFor example, if the workers in the material production sector cannot create more surplus value, many of the non-material productive work necessary for society will not be carried out, and the whole social machine will stop working.
First, the development and utilization of industrial robots, using machines to manipulate machines, has replaced a large number of workersphysical laborAnd partialmental labour；
Second,automatic production lineThe number of workers directly engaged in production operations has been greatly reduced, and even a few so-called“Unmanned factory”。
bourgeois classAccording to these circumstances, economists pointed out that technology and science "become independent sources of surplus value", and Marx's theory of surplus value is no longer applicable to modern capitalism.However, this view is wrong.
The production automation under capitalist conditions only means thattool of productionMore advanced, whether robots, automated production lines or "unmanned factories", they are still essentiallyMaterialized labororConstant capitalIn kind.Their value is formed in the process of workers producing them. When they participate in the production of products, they just transfer the original value to the products without creatingNew value, let alone create surplus value.Under the condition of production automation, directly engaged inproductive laborWhile the number of workers engaged in scientific research, design, technology and management is increasing, the proportion of mental labor among "total workers" is increasing, and the complexity and intensity of labor are increasing, which makes it a labor with high productivity. With other conditions unchanged, this labor will create greater value and surplus value.
In short, the production automation in capitalist countries is humansocial sciencestechnical progressAnd its universal adoption will greatly improvelabour productivitySo that all capitalists can obtain more surplus value than in the past.Under capitalist conditions, production automation is a means for capitalists to obtain high surplus value, while workers are employedsurplus laborIt is still the only source of this surplus value.
On the historical destination of surplus value,Socialist countryAccording to Marxism, surplus value should belong toproletariatAll.
Generation mode
surplus value
The transformation of labor into commodities and currency into capital is the transformation of labor surplus into surplus valueSocio economic conditionsAnd processes.Marx's theory of demonstrating this process isLabor axiologyFundamentalSurplus value theory。
Karl MarxOn《Capital》"Surplus value is the excess created by employees and occupied by capitalists free of charge."value of labor powerThe value ofsurplus laborThe condensation of capitalism reflects the relationship between capitalists and hired workers in terms of exploitation and being exploited.[3]
Not only can it be explained and solvedeconomic problemIt can also explain and solve a series of problems such as life and society, so as to improve the surplus value theory of Marxism and greatly enhance the vitality of Marxism.
In a sense, surplus value production is the inevitable result of social development,Social productionThe greater the surplus value of, the more progressive society.
staynew economyIn society, when we analyze the production of surplus value, we should give surplus a broader and new concept, or we should understand the production of surplus value from a new perspective, which is also the requirement of the development and progress of the times.
Under the condition that the necessary working hours are fixed, the longer the working days are, the longer the remaining working hours are, and the more surplus value the capitalists extract from the workers, thusResidual value ratioThe higher.That is to say, the necessary labor time remains unchanged. The longer the labor days are, the longer the remaining labor time is, and the higher the residual value rate is,Residual valueThe bigger.
surplus value
In the early days of capitalism, it was mainly manual labor, and capitalists often usedextended working timeTo extract more surplus value.
In addition, the capitalists also usedlabour intensityTo extract surplus value.Increasing labor intensity means that workers spend moreLabor volumeIn fact, it is equivalent to extending the working day.This is a covert form of extending the working day.
The minimum limit of working days shall not be less than or equal to the necessary working hours.If there is no surplus labor time to produce surplus value, capital production will no longer exist.Therefore, the working days of workers must be greater than the necessary working hours.
The maximum limit of working days is restricted by the following two factors:
First,Physiological boundary of labor force
Workers must have some time for rest and meals every day to meetPhysiological needs, restoring labor force;
Second,Moral boundary
Workers need a certain amount of time in a day for housework and participationsocial activitiesAndcultural lifeTo meet the spiritual and social needs.The scope and quantity of such needs depend on the social, economic and culturalDevelopment level。
Under the constraints of the above two factors, the actual length of working days depends onWage labourAnd capital.
So, how can we shorten the necessary working hours?
The necessary labor time is the time to reproduce the value of labor force, and to shorten the necessary labor time, it must be reducedValue of labor。
The value of labor force is necessary to maintain the life of workers and their familiesMeans of subsistenceThe value composition of (essential means of subsistence) is subject to two conditions:
First, the production workers and their families must live in the means of subsistence sectorlabour productivity。To reduce the value of means of subsistence, we must improve theseProduction departmentLabor productivity.
Second, the labor productivity of the production departments related to the production of these means of livelihood.these ones hereMeans of productionThe increase of labor productivity in the sector will also reduce the value of the means of subsistence.
Therefore, the production of relative surplus value is due tosocial labor productivityIt increases and reduces the value of labor force, thus shortening the necessary labor time and realizing the result of extending the remaining labor time accordingly.[4]
Automated production
along withcomputer technology, information technology, automatic control technologynetwork techniqueetc.Modern science and technologyWith the rapid development of, machine operation is being promoted in more and more fields to replace people's heavy physical and mental power.Production automation is the most appropriate reference for this trend.
Production automation means that labor is increasingly replaced by machine programmed operation, which means humanLabor inputless and less.Due to the substantial increase in productivity, more and more wealth（use value）Be produced.
The application of high technology makesproduction efficiencyThe production of wealth has increased while high-techEnterprise profitIt is also increasing, otherwise the capitalists will not adopt advanced technology.
1、 Why is profit (surplus value) likely to increase when labor input is reduced in production?
2、 Is labor still the source of value or profit in the modern economy, which is widely used by high-tech?
The problem of pushing production automation to the extreme - unmanned factory - conveys a clearer meaning.That is, does the unmanned factory have no profit (surplus value)?
The first thing to be clear is that any advancedmachinery equipment、Production process, regardless of itsProduction processThe extent of coverage,Degree of automationHow high are they? They all participate in the production of value and use value as the "owner's means of production".The operation of machinery and equipment is only based on the program designed by people in advance.The operation of machinery and equipment in an unmanned factory can only transfer its own value to new products, but cannot create any new value.onlylabor spent in productionIt is still the source of surplus value (profit).
(1) From the perspective of the essence of value, value is a general concept, which reveals the substance between commodity producersInterests；
(2) FromValueIn terms of (scale), the quantity of value reflects the relative relationship of labor productivity among commodity producers.In this way, it is easy to understand that "unmanned factory" can still obtain surplus value (profit) without living labor.
Marx
This is because:
First, the value of commodities is determined by the necessary labor time of the society, not by whether a "unmanned factory" uses workers (labor force).That is to say, if the society generally uses live labor to produce a certain commodity, the value of the commodity will be high, which has little to do with the amount of labor used by a factory.
On the contrary, the individual labor of the products produced by the unmanned factory is far less thanSocial laborThe result of selling the commodity according to the social value is: no one gets it from the factoryExcess surplus value(Profit).
Theoretically, as long as the whole societycommodity productionUnmanned factories are not all usedProduction modeThe necessary labor time of the society will form the value of commodities.Through the "weight center" of value, other departments using live labor will transfer the value created by themselves to the products of the unmanned factory.
Second, a large amount of social auxiliary labor supports the operation of the "unmanned factory" machine system.Even despite the special situation that technological monopoly brings profits, the operation of "unmanned factory" cannot be separated from the intellectual support and material support of all walks of life in the whole society.This is reflected in:
(2) The independent (or joint) full-time R&D institutions of enterprises provide intelligence sources for the "unmanned factory".All high-tech enterprises have their own research and development institutions, which are specially responsible for tackling andproduction processClosely related technical problems or production processes, and apply the research results to production practice free of charge.
Third, ineconomic globalizationToday, withworld marketformationcommodity valueThere is also a trend of "globalization", which means that the value creation of commodities has expanded to the world.
In this way, the so-called advanced and backward, some people and no one only show a relative relationship. In fact, "unmanned factory" is just a link in the development of human labor specialization, and its value source should be traced back to human labor outside the factory.
Surplus value production
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Basic concepts
Residual value isCapitalist commodity productionThe special category of "s" is related to this specific analysis object.It indicates the capitalist factory system and the expansion of reproductionSocio economic system。This is an essential analysis.
Therefore, we should firmly grasp this feature to conclude the surplus value production relationship, study its various appearances, and analyze the physiological process of capitalism.
Some researchers have problems with this:
First, leave the limited object, discuss the category nature of surplus value, and attribute the phenomenon that should not belong to surplus value production to it.This is "Zhang Guanli Dai" and "poaching".After all, we can't have surplus value analysis for everythingeconomic form And the economic process, otherwise it will be counterproductive.
Second, useaccountingAnd "surplus value".Moreover, it is arbitrary and unprovoked to accuse the category of surplus value of being "outdated".Econometrics andsystem analysis The residual value of is not a level regulation.
Third, we did not pay attention to the national historical connotation of surplus value, but blindly carried out "mathematical reasoning".This is the logicalization of surplus value, and all kinds of "obstacles to understanding" caused by it are based on inappropriate "assumptions".
In a word, this concept is empty without the capitalist factory.[5]
In addition, there are also large land owners in capitalist society, and these exploitation groups all take surplus value as the basis for survival.Surplus value distribution is obtained by industrial capitalistsIndustrial profit, obtained by commercial capitalistsBusiness profitBorrowing capitalists get interest, and large landowners get rent, revealing the secret of capitalist exploitation.
Marx pointed out: "The concentration of the means of production and the socialization of labor have reached the point where they are incompatible with their capitalist shell, which will be blown up.Capitalist private ownershipOfknellIt's going to ring.The dispossessed will be deprived. "
Marx inCapitalist mode of productionNext, he studied productive labor, discovered the theory of surplus value, revealed the development law of the inevitable demise of capitalism and the inevitable victory of socialism, and established the proletariansocial positionAndHistorical mission, identified the Communist Party'sBasic ProgramAnd the basic line, become the methodology of the Communist Partyoutlook on lifeAnd values.
Industrial capital and industrial profit
1. Surplus value converted into profit
Profit and surplus value are the same thing, but the difference is that surplus value is for variable capital, and profit is for allPrepaid capitalfor.Surplus value is the essence of profit and profit is the transformation form of surplus valueContent and formRelationship.
profit marginIt is the ratio of residual value to total prepaid capital, and the profit rate is always less than the residual value rate.Profit margins mask the true source of surplus value.The profit rate is produced by capitalist goodsimpetus, capitalists engaged inProduction and operationThe only goal of the company is to pursue the maximum profit. Where the profit rate is high, the capital will be invested there.
2. Profit converted into average profit
Competition between departments and capitalfree flow , making the profit rate of each production department tend to average, forming a socialAverage profit rate。After the formation of the average profit rate, the capitalists in each department will obtain the profit corresponding to their capital volume according to the average profit rate, which is called average profit.
3. Conversion of commodity value into production price
As profits turn into average profits, the value of goods also turns into production prices.After the surplus value is converted into average profit, the goods are no longer sold by value, but byCost priceThe production price composed of average profit is sold.Production price is the transformation form of commodity value.The formation of production price is based on the formation of average profit rate.
After the commodity value is converted into production price,market priceIt is no longer about the fluctuation of value, but about the fluctuation of production price.
productionPrice formationLater, the goods will be sold at the production price, so,law of residual valueWhen it is transformed into the law of average profit, the law of value will also be transformed into the law of production price.The market price of commodities fluctuates up and down with the production price as the center, which is the manifestation of the role of the law of value under the new conditions.
The role of the law of production price is embodied in:
First, spontaneously adjust the distribution of capital and labor among various social sectors.
Second, it regulates the distribution of surplus value among the capitalists.
Third, we should encourage capitalist enterprises to constantly improve production technology and strengthen management.
sufferExcess profitDriven by, enterprises must constantly improve production technology, improve operation and management, and reduceproduction costs, improve economic efficiency, thus promotingcapitalist economyDevelopment of.
Commercial capital and commercial profit
1. Nature and function of commercial capital
Commercial capital is derived from industrial capitalCommodity capitalThe form of capital that is separated from the function and plays an independent role is the independent form of the function of commodity capital.
The function of commercial capital is the function of commodity capital, that is, to engage inCommodity salesAnd realize the value of prepaid capital and residual value.
2. Formation of commercial profit
Seen from the phenomenon, commercial profits come from commoditiesSelling priceThe difference above the purchase price.
This creates the illusion that commercial profits are derived from the markup above the value of commoditiesCirculation fieldGenerated.
In fact, commercial profit is only a part of the surplus value created by industrial workers in the production process, which is transferred from industrial capitalists to commercial capitalists.After the independence of commercial capital, like industrial capital, it must also obtain average profits.
Productive circulation costsTo the extent necessary, it will add all of them to the value of the goods, increase the value of the goods, and then get compensation through the realization of the value of the goods, and obtain average profits.
Pure circulation costThe value of goods cannot be added. Its compensation and profit are obtained by improvingSales priceMethod.
Interest rateThe maximum limit of cannot exceed the average profit rate.Under the condition that the average profit rate is fixed, the interest rate is affected by therelation between supply and demandAdjustment of.
Bank profits are determined byLoan interestandinterest on depositThe difference between the two is formed.Bank profit is the same asbankerinvestment bankOfOwn capitalThe ratio of is the profit rate of bank capital.The profit rate of bank capital must also be equal to the averageIndustrial and commercial enterprisesThe average profit margin of.Bank profits, like interest, come from the surplus value created by industrial workers.
The joint-stock company separates the ownership of capital from the right to use capital, and the stock owner has become a pure owner of monetary capital, who can receive dividends on a regular basis only based on the ownership of capital.The essence of dividends is still the surplus value created by workers.
Land rent is the economic realization of land ownership.The essence of capitalist land rent is that agricultural capitalistsland use rightThe surplus value paid to land owners and created by agricultural workers exceeds the average profit.It embodiesAgricultural capitalistThe relationship of exploiting agricultural workers together with landowners.
There are two basic forms of capitalist land rent, namely differential land rent and absolute land rent.
2. Differential ground rent
In capitalist agriculture, the amount of land rent paid by agricultural capitalists to land owners is different on land of equal area but different quality, that is, differential land rent.The grade difference of land is the condition for the formation of differential land rent.
The reason of differential land rent is the monopoly of land management right caused by land limitation, because in agriculture, land is limited, especially good land.
Graded land rent I means that the equivalent capital invested in different grades of land at the same time has differentproductivityThe land rent generated from the excess profits is due to the different fertility of the land andLand locationDifferent.
Differential land rent II refers to the land rent converted from excess profits formed by continuous investment of the same amount of capital on the same land with different productivity.
The formation of absolute land rent is based on the fact that the organic composition of agricultural capital is lower thansocial capital On average, there are institutions.The monopoly of private ownership of land is the cause of absolute land rent.The source of absolute land rent is still the surplus value created by agricultural workers.
In addition to the two basic forms of differential rent and absolute rent, capitalist rent also has monopoly rent.
The so-called monopoly rent is the realMonopoly priceThe land rent generated from the excess profits.Land price is directly proportional to the amount of land rent and inversely proportional to the bank interest rate.
With the improvement of the organic composition of capital, the profit rate and interest rate have a downward trend, so the land price shows an upward trend.
Status role
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Marx
Residual value incivil lifeChina plays a very important role. The surplus value created by workers is a measure of societyproductivityLevel,Value of lifeSize, and the importance of national financial strengthRuler。
A yardstick for measuring productivity
The amount of surplus value created by workers is an important yardstick to measure the level of social productivity.
The amount of surplus value created by workers is directly proportional to the level of social productivity.The lower the level of social productivity, the less surplus value created by workers;The higher the level of social productivity, the more surplus value the workers will create.Therefore, the amount of surplus value created by workers is an important yardstick to measure the level of social productivity.
withagricultural productionFor example, the output of a labor force in a year was still hard to support themselves and their families in primitive society;slave societyIn feudal society, although the output has improved, it can only support a few more people besides themselves and their families;In capitalist society, due to the huge development of productivity, its output can feed dozens or hundreds of peopledeveloped country, what percentageagricultural populationIt can meet the food supply of the whole population, which is the proof.
Here, the continuous growth of surplus value created by agricultural labourers marks the continuous development of agricultural productivity, and the level of agricultural productivity can be judged by its quantity.
A yardstick for measuring the value of life
The amount of surplus value created for society is an important yardstick to measure the value of life.
What is the value of life?
Although there are different interpretations of it, everyone agrees that if people make great contributions and have obvious influence, their life will be of great value.
The more surplus value created by human society, the greater the contribution, the more significant the impact, and the greater the value of life;On the contrary, if there is less surplus value created for the society, the contribution will be smaller, the impact will be smaller, so the value of life will be smaller. If there is no surplus value created for the society, then life will be worthless.In this way, the amount of surplus value created for the society becomes an important yardstick to measure the value of life.
Among all kinds of people, normal people can create value, but dementia people and vegetable people cannot, so they can not create surplus value, but need to live on the support of others. Therefore, their life can not only be said to be worthless, but also can be said to be "negative value".
Although normal people can create value, some people, such as those in historynobleSlave owners, landlords and some purity in modern society“Profiteer”Instead of creating, they live a luxurious life. Because they do not create surplus value for the society, but consume the surplus value of the society, their life is not only valueless, but also "negative value". Like dementia people and vegetable people, it is purely a social appendage.
The total value created by a normal person who creates value includes self use value and surplus value. People create more total value and surplus value naturallyTotal valueUnder certain circumstances, more self use value leads to less surplus value, and less self use value leads to more surplus value. The relationship between the two is inversely proportional. The value of life changes with the amount of surplus value.
For example,model official revered for wisdom and integrity, Bao GongHai RuiSuch historical people with lofty ideals as Jiao Yulu, Kong Fansen, Premier Zhou and a large number of other Communist Party members have made great contributions to the society in an selfless and selfless manner. However, they and their families live a very frugal life, with very little self use value and a lot of surplus value, so their lives are very valuable and highly praised;However, corrupt officials such as He Shen, Hu Changqing and Cheng Kejie, who have created value at the expense of public interests and profited from private interestsEmbezzlement and briberyIf the value created by him is changed into self use value, the amount of surplus value will be very small, even negative, so his life will be valueless and will be nailed to history foreverStigma columnI was scolded by others.
Some staff of state organs, cultural and educational institutions, unable to get rid of the shackles of traditional dogmas, believe that only workers in the material production sector can create surplus value,Non material production sectorOur workers do not create surplus value.So I strongly oppose this view and think that they have not created surplus value. According to this view, their life will be worthlessIt's tolerable, who can't bear it?
In fact, they didn't understand that value is just a category of usefulness, that is, the relationship between the object and the subject's needs. Anyone createdsocial needs Everything creates value. The value created can not only meet the needs of yourself and your family, but also meet the needs of others. It is not because you are not a worker in the material production sector that you do not create value and surplus value.
Personnel of state organs, cultural and educational institutions whose work is of great importancesocial results, its benefitsMuch greater thanWhat we need is far more than what the society pays for usTotal payrollHow can you say that you have not created surplus value?
A yardstick for measuring national financial resources
Labourers create for societyTotal surplus valueIt is an important yardstick to measure the strength of national financial resources.
How to measure the national financial resources (note: this refers to the national financial resources, notcomprehensive national strength）The strength of?Often usedGross National ProductOr per capita national income, which is far less accurate than the total amount of surplus value created by workers for society.
This is because: although the gross national product is indeed closely related to the strength of national financial resources, it depends on the size of the country to a large extent (such asold China）Even if the economy is backward, the GNP will be quite largeConsumptionIt is also large, and the country's financial resources are actually very weak, so it is impossible to accomplish anything important.Although the per capita national income can accurately reflect the national wealth, if the country is too small, even ifPer capita national incomeIt is very high, and the national financial resources cannot be too strong. If nothing can be done, it will still be controlled by others.
As in 1990Persian Gulf WarWhen,KuwaitAlthough the per capita national income is very high and very rich, because it is a small country, the national financial resources are not strong enough to withstand the fact that the per capita national income is much lower than its ownIraqAnd once conquered the country.
The total surplus value is actually the difference between the gross national product and the gross national consumption, which can accurately reflect the amount of wealth that the country holds and can dispatch, and can accurately measure the strength of national financial resources.
To sum up, through theMarxist political economyThe accurate interpretation of the concept of "surplus value" can greatly improve the theoretical value of this concept. It is not only applicable to capitalist society, but also to other societies. It can explain and solve economic problems, as well as a series of problems such as life and society.
Theoretical supplement
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Engels' view
Engels pointed out: "Every worker employed by the capitalist is doing two kinds of workworking hoursPart of the labor is used to repay the wages advanced to him by the capitalist. Marx called this part of laborNecessary labor。But after that, he must continue to work, and during this time, he is a capitalistProduction surplus value。”
Marx pointed out that "like all others, develop laborproductivityIn the same way, the machine is to make the goods cheap and shorten the part of working days that the worker spends for himself, so as to extend the part of working days that he gives to the capitalist free of charge.Machines are the means of producing surplus value. "
All developed machines are composed of three essentially different parts: engineTransmission mechanism、Tool machineimplementWorking machine。The engine is the power of the whole mechanism;The transmission mechanism is composed of flywheel, rotating shaft, gear and other various accessories. Its adjustment labor changes the form of motion when necessary to distribute the motion and send it to the tool machine.The function of these two parts of the structure instead transmits the movement to the tool machine, so that the tool machine can grasp the object of labor and change it according to a certain purpose.This part of the machine tool machine is the 18th centuryindustrial revolutionThe starting point of.
It is because of the creation of the tool machine thatsteam engineThe revolution of became inevitable, which led to the industrial revolution.
The material existence mode of labor material acquisition machine requiresnatural forceTo replace manpower, and to consciously apply natural science to replace the experienceConventionalIn the machine system, large industry has a completely objective production body, which is a ready-made materialProduction conditionsAppear in front of the workers.
Machines work only through direct socialization or common labor.Therefore,Labor processAt present, the collaborative nature of labor has become a technical necessity determined by the nature of the means of labor itself.Big industry integrates huge natural forces and natural sciencesProduction processThe labor productivity must be greatly improved.
2. Realization of residual value
Surplus value should be created in production andCirculation processIn order to achieve.Realize surplus value through capital circulation and turnover.The remaining part is converted into investment and becomescapital accumulation And realize expanded reproduction.
Defending the Shadow of Das Kapital
Once theAbstract labourRecognized as historyEntity relationshipClass practice is necessarily included and developed from it.The so-called "mode of production itself has its own logic", but refers to the historical production movement.The mode of production of the whole concept is a production movement viewed from the historical perspective, from which it produces a specific societyProduction relationsEntity.But this requires dialectical separation between the theory of mode of production and the theory of production relations.Labor alienationThe failure of theory to achieve this goal is dominated by philosophyhistorical scienceframework.
After 1847, Marx began to revise and sublate the theory of labor alienation:
(1) LabouringHistorical theoryIt comes down to a certain production mode theory;
(2) The theory of surplus value, as a theory of production relations with capital as the central content, emerged from it.
The above twoTheoretical systemThe integration of our work highlights the historicalPrescriptive, finally driving away the philosophicalideologyIn the presence of.[6]
On this point, Engels actually said more clearly and more clearly:
Among the many important discoveries that Marx made his name permanent in the history of science, here we can only talk about two points.
The first point is that he is in the whole worldHistorical viewRealized changes on... HistoryFor the first timeBe placed on its true foundation;An obvious fact that was completely ignored before, that is, people must eat, drink, live and wear first, that is to say, they must work first, then they can strive for rule, engage in politics, religion and philosophy, etc. - this obvious fact was finally recognized in history[7]
The second important discovery is that we have thoroughly clarified the relationship between capital and laborbourgeois classEconomists orsocialistBoth tried to give a scientifically based answer to this question, but in vain, until Marx finally gave an answer.[7]
His answer is as follows... The value of a commodity is determined by the social necessity embodied in the production of the commodity and thus in its reproductionLabor volumeIt was decided that if the worker worked for the capitalist for 6 hours every day, he would fully compensate for the capitalist's expenses, that is, 6 hours of labor would compensate for 6 hours of labor[7]
In this way, the workers who work for the capitalist will not only reproduce his work paid by the capitalistValue of laborIn addition, it also produces surplus value, which is first occupied by the capitalist, and theneconomic lawThroughoutcapitalist class In short, it is the basis of all wealth consumed or accumulated by the non working class.[7]
This proves that modern capitalists are also likeSlave ownerOr exploiting corvee laborFeudal lordSimilarly, it is by taking other people's unpaid labor to get rich, and all these forms of exploitation are different from each other only because the way of taking this unpaid labor is different.[7]
In this way, the bourgeois nonsense modernsocial systemThe hypocritical empty talk of justice, justice, equality of rights, equality of obligations and general harmony of interests has lost its final foothold. The modern bourgeois society, like all previous societies, is as clear as the truth: it is also a small and shrinking huge institution where a few people exploit the vast majority.[7]
Surplus value theory
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Marx's portrait
Marx in《Capital》Volume IV -《Surplus value theory》It was pointed out that Adam Smith, an 18th century British bourgeois economistClassical Political EconomicsAnd played an important role in its formation and development.In his place“political economicsIt has developed into a whole, and its scope has been formed to a certain extent ".[8]
Adam Smith first summed up value as generalSocial laborFrom this point of view, profit and land rent are regarded as deduction of the value created by workersownerPossession without compensation.This shows that he has realized the true origin of surplus value.[3]
But in Adam Smith'saxiologyIn the theory of surplus value, there are both correct views and wrong, vulgar views.[3]
Adam Smith could not distinguish between labor and labor, so he could notLaw of valueOn the basis of, he explained how profits are generated from the exchange of labor and capital. He also proposed that the value is determined by income, that iswagesProfit, profit and land rent are the source of value. Profit and land rent are interpreted as natural rewards for capital and land.He also proposed the Social YearTotal productsThe value of is a wrong dogma composed of wages, profits and land rent.[3]
In addition, Marx also studied Adam Smith'sproductive laborandUnproductive laborThe theory of.Adam Smith correctly pointed out that under capitalist conditions, labor exchanged with capital is productive labor, and labor exchanged with income is non productive labor.[3]
However, Adam Smith used whether to producePhysical productsTo distinguish capitalist productive labor from non productive labor.[3]
Tax principle
In this book, Marx analyzed in detail the main economic works of D. Ricardo《Political Economics and Tax Principles》, for RicardoLand rent theory, Expensesprice theory , RemainingValue theory, profit theory and accumulation theory.Ricardo abandoned the contradictory interpretation in Smith's value theory, made a thorough statement and play to the stipulation that value depends on working time, andLabor value theoryOn the basis of this, the paper discusses the relationship between wages and profits, as well as the opposition between profits and land rent, "reveals and explains the economic opposition between classes,... thuspolitical economicsThe root causes of the historical struggle and the process of historical development were captured and revealed.[9]
Ricardo attached great importance to the study of land rent, and correctly linked the land rent theory with the labor value theory.But he mistakenlyDifferential rentThe generation of“Law of diminishing returns on land”Connected together, but also think that there is noabsolute rent。The fundamental reason why Ricardo denied the existence of absolute land rent was thatProduction priceConfused with value.He has no interest in profitsAverage profitThe transformation from value to production price has been correctly explained, and the fact that equal capital gains equal profits has not been explained on the basis of the law of value.
While Marx analyzed in detail the wrong view of Ricardo's land rent theory, he also criticized the German vulgar economist JK. Lobertus Yagtuofu (1805-1875)'s "new land rent theory", and criticized Ricardo's use of the law of diminishing returns on land to explainAverage profit rateThe error of the law of declining, and the error of denying that the general crisis of overproduction is inevitable under capitalist conditions.
Marx inspected the 1930s and 1950svulgar economics The appearance ofclassical economicsThe historical process of disintegration reveals the class nature of vulgar economics and its theoretical fallacies.
Malthus grasped the confusion caused by Ricardo's failure to correctly explain the "contradiction" between the exchange of labor and capital and the law of value, and the "contradiction" between the law of equal profits and the law of value obtained by equal capital, attacked and attempted to overthrow Ricardo's theory of labor value.He believes that the value of commodities is determined by the amount of labor that commodities can control or exchange, and the profit comes fromcommodity exchange。in order toRealize profitsThere must be buyers who are not sellers, that is, there must be landowners, pensioners, priests, their servants, attendants and all other non productive consumers.
Marx pointed out that Malthus's value theory was an open defense of the class interests of land owners and nobles.
Marx also critically analyzed the theories of R. Torrance (1780~1864), J. Mill, J.R. McCulloch, S. Bailey (1791~1870), J.S. Mill and others, and profoundly revealed the classicalEconomic schoolDisintegration andvulgar economics The process of the formation and development of school.
Marx pointed out that,Ricardian economics The disintegration of "is based on the following two points:
(1) Capital and labor are exchanged according to the law of value;
From this point of view, we do not understand the relationship between value and cost price ".[10]
stayClassical Political EconomicsDuring the historical period of disintegration and formation of vulgar political economyproletariatStarting from the standpoint and taking Ricardo's theory as the basis, criticize the capitalist productionUtopian socialismSuch as British economist P. Ravenstone (?~1830), THodgkin(1787~1869), et al.They use Ricardo's value theory and surplus valueTheoretical demonstrationThe exploitation of the working class by the bourgeoisie demonstrates the inevitability of capitalist productionrationality。Marx affirmed the correct argument in their theory, but also pointed out that they did not overcome the chaos in Ricardo's theory.
During this period, although classical political economy was in the process of disintegration, several economists still developed classical political economy on some points.Marx analyzed British economists G. Ramsey (1800 ～ 1871) and R. Jones (1790 ～ 1855)SwitzerlandThe works of economist A.E. Scherbier (1797-1869) believed that they were distinguishingConstant capitalandVariable capitalProblems and analysisOrganic composition of capitalHe has made some contributions to the role.
limitations
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Theoretical dilemma
After all, the theory of surplus value was based on capitalism in the 19th centuryEarly growth stageFormed, it will inevitably have certain historical limitations.
For more than 100 years, withWorld historyThe further development of, in particularWorld War IIAfter that, the historical limitations of the surplus value theory have been increasingly apparent.
China, as a country with Marxist theory as its guiding ideologySocialist countryWith the deepening of the reform of the socialist market economy, the sense of the historical limitations of the surplus value theory is even stronger.
It can be said that the theory of surplus value is facing an increasingly serious dilemma.
(1) It is not consistent with the current situation that the working hours are generally shortened.
the Second World WarSince the end, world capitalism has enteredInternational monopolyandglobalizationDevelopmentalNew stageIn particular, the rapid development of multinational companies has greatly improved the level of automation and socialization of enterprises, forcing workersextended working timeIt is no longer the main way for capitalists to get rich. The working hours of workers have generally been greatly shortened. Some countries have even begun to implement the 35 hour working week system. The naked sense of compulsion experienced by workers in the 19th century has accordingly been greatly reduced.
In this case, there are obvious differences between the surplus value theory and the actual facts.Of course pressRelative residual valueThe theory of "relative" can barely be explained, but the problem is that once the word "relative" is added to a theory, its persuasiveness will be greatly reduced, and it is difficult toGeneral publicAccept.
Since the beginning of the 20th century, science and technology have developed rapidly and played an increasingly important role in social productioneconomic growthOne of the leading factors of.
In China, Deng Xiaoping strongly advocated that the view that "science and technology are productive forces" has long been widely known and popular.
However, according to the surplus value theory, only workers'labor spent in productionCan createNew value, no matter how advancedmachinery equipmentNeither can create new value, which can not reflect the role of science and technology.The role of science and technology can only be reflected indirectly through the theory of relative surplus value, which makes the role of science and technology greatly depreciated.
along withProduction socializationThe improvement of the level of enterprisesOperation management, land, capital and other production factors play an increasingly important role in production, while the role of simple living labor is greatly reduced.
However, according to the theory of surplus value, except for living labor, other factors of production cannot create new value, and profits, land rent, interest, etc. are all exploitation, which fundamentally negates the role and contribution of other factors of production in the production process except for living labor.This is neither consistent with the current worldcapitalist economyIt is also not conducive to the in-depth development of China's socialist market economy reform.
According to the surplus value theory, onlythe secondary industryOnly the living labor of workers can create new value, and other employees engaged in the tertiary industry, such as business and finance, cannot create new value.
This is undoubtedly quite correct when the tertiary industry was just differentiated from the secondary industry in the 19th century, which is still in its infancy, and to a large extent depends on the secondary industry.However, the tertiary industry has already grown and expanded. In many countries, the tertiary industrynational economyIt is hard to continue to adhere to the surplus value theory because the proportion of the surplus value in the surplus value theory has exceeded that of the secondary industry.
According to the surplus value theory, profit is the transformation form of surplus value, and surplus value is the result of forcing workers to extend their working hours.Fundamentally, enterprises can only force workers to extend their working hours if they want to improve economic efficiency.
If this argument is used to accuse capitalists of exploiting workers, it can barely work. If it is used to guide the operation and management of state-owned enterprises in China, it will not work immediately, because China is a socialist countryThe people are masters of the countryIn a country where workers are the masters of the enterprise, forcing workers to work is not only unreasonable, but also unfoundedIllegal act。
According to the theory of surplus value, surplus value is the new value created by workers in the remaining labor time, but it is not further clear whether it is created by collective labor or individual labor of workers?It is impossible to demonstrate the rationality of the existence of public ownership.
This is very important for us who willPublic ownership of means of productionFor a socialist country, which is regarded as the foundation of the country, it is really a vital theoretical defect.
Root cause of failure
As mentioned above, from the current perspective, the theory of surplus value is not perfect, and there are many major defects and mistakes.Analyzing the causes of these defects and errors, there are mainly the following two:
oneMechanistic theoryMarx put forward the theory of influence surplus value in the middle of the 19th century.Science at that timetheoretical realmThe dominant ideology is the mechanistic method of thinking, that is, things are pieced together from one part to another, in which each part is isolated.In philosophy, Marx opposed this view and advocatedDialectical materialismHe believes that the world is universally connected.
However, the mechanistic thought is deeply rooted after all, and it is difficult to eradicate it immediately.When analyzing and studying specific problems, Marx is still inevitably affected by the theory of machinery, and the theory of surplus value is a typical example.On the one hand, Marx saw that living labor mustPast laborOn the other hand, he insists that only living labor can create new value. In the past, labor only transferred the original value to new products.
twoClass natureIn the middle of the 19th century, Marx founded the theory of surplus value when the European labor movement was surging.
In the fierce class struggle, the slightest obscurity and grayness are not allowed. Everyone must clearly state his position, either on the side of the workers or on the side of the capitalists.Marx took a clear stand on the position of the working class, trying to clarify the secrets of capitalists' exploitation of workers and serve the liberation cause of the working class.This is the advantage of Marxism and the fundamental reason why Marxism has been widely spread all over the world for more than 100 years;But at the same time, it is necessary to mark Marxism with a deep class brand, so as to show some class prejudice, which affects the scientificity of Marxist theory to a certain extent.
In the theory of surplus value, Marx believes that only the living labor of industrial workers can create new value, and other factors of production can not create new value, even the labor of commercial and bank workers can not create new value, which can not be said to be due to the extreme influence of class nature.
Comment on the "Theory of Surplus Value Obsolescence"
With the development of modern science and technologyManual laborerThe need forMental workerFor example, in some sophisticated electronic, chemical and other sectors.In these places, it seems that the bourgeoisie makes profits by relying on science, technology and knowledge, or only exploits the surplus value of a small number of workers.
As a result, some people believe that Marx's theory of value and surplus value does notSufficient estimate(Taking into account) The great role of science, technology and knowledge in production.This view is wrong.
In value theory, Marx used“Complex labor”This concept represents the role of science, technology and knowledge.
simple labourIt is "the average consumption of simple labor force of every ordinary person without any expertise", "more complex labor is just self multiplying or rather multiple simple labor, so a small amount of complex labor is equal to a large amount of simple labor." It is obvious that the labor with science, technologyKnowledge factorLabor.
Science, technology and knowledge are more and more important production factors.However, science, technology and knowledge are not workersObject of laborAnd independent production factors other than means of labor.Without workers (mental workers are also workers), science, technology and knowledge cannot automatically produce and create value, and naturally cannot create profits.
Moreover, we should integrate science, technology and knowledge with workers, objects of labor and means of laborphase separationThe machine is just a pile of steel, and the object of labor can neither be known nor used by people;Workers can only be regarded as a group of animals, neitherSocialThere is no organization, and it is impossible to work.
Therefore, it is incorrect to regard science, technology and knowledge as independent production factors. Science, technology and knowledge can only be embodied or materialized in workerstool of productionOnly the labor objects can participate in production.
In capitalistPrimitive accumulationStage and initial stage, due to theunderdevelopedThe bourgeoisie mainly exploits the proletariat by extending the absolute surplus value of working hours.During that period, capitalists forced workers to work more than 12 hours a day, some even up to 20 hours.After a long struggle, the proletariat won the right to work 10 hours a day.
With the rapid development of science, technology and knowledge and the growth of proletarian organizations, the bourgeois landlords gradually exploit the proletariat by occupying relative surplus value.
Therefore, the progress of science, technology and knowledge has not changed the fact that capitalists exploit workers. What has changed is the developed form of exploitation. Production in the form of relative surplus value replaces production in the form of absolute surplus value, and auxiliary labor such as management, monitoring and maintenance replaces production labor in the original sense,Make the possession of surplus value more subtle and hidden.
From this point of view, the "outdated surplus value theory" is fundamentally wrong.[11]
