Marxism Politcial Economy Essay -- Economics Marx

According to Marxist political economy, exploitation is the key factor which underpins the very fundamentals of society. By this Marxists believe exploitation is more than simply an economic phenomenon, but instead a norm created through false consciousness, which has infested itself within all aspects of society; stretching from the state, to the very structure of the social system. Marx emphasis on exploitation lies in his belief that the value of a ‘commodity’ is purely derived from the accumulated labour expended to produce such a good. Although the ‘labour theory of value’ was originally contemplated by Classical Economist such as Smith/Ricardo the emphasis for Marx was on labour as a value rather than simply a cost in the production process. As Dooley explains ‘Marx maintained that labour was the sole value creating substance’ (Dooley 2005) and this point is further developed by Sayer who states that the fundamental distinguishing characteristic of Marxism ‘is the existence of labour-power as a commodity’. (Sayer 1979). For Marx labour was the source of all wealth in society, which would ultimately be transformed by the bourgeoisie into ‘surplus value’ and profit through numerous industrial policies such as specialisation through division of labour. Capitalism is a system that encourages ‘alienation’ of the worker as the commodities produced are not produced for need or desire, but instead in the pursuit of profit. It’s from this concept that exploitation can be explained. Marx defined exploitation as the surplus value extracted from the labour force in order to generate profit. This would be achieved through paying wages lower than the value of the commodity produced. Such a theory remains evident in the n... ...Economy. London: International Publishers. 19 - 23. Marx, K and Engels, F (2002). The Communist Manifesto. 3rd ed. London: Penguin. 219. Marx, K and Engels, F (2002). The Communist Manifesto. 3rd ed. London: Penguin. 258. Powell, B and Skarbek, D. (2004). Sweatshops and Third World Living Standards. The Independent Institute. 53 (1), 6, 10. Sayer, Derek (1979). Marx's Method Ideology, Science & Critque in Capital. 2nd ed. Brighton: The Harvester Press Limited. 44-45. Sumner Colin (1979). Reading Ideologies an investigation in to the Marxist theory of ideology and law. London: Academic Press Inc. 44. Woodley, Daniel (2009). Political Ideologies. Spain: p43. Woodley, Daniel (2009). Political Ideologies. Spain: p42 http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/7242492.stm (2008) http://www.indexmundi.com/bangladesh/gdp_real_growth_rate.html