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An Introduction to Marxist Economic Theory

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This is probably the world's most read primer in orthodox Marxist economic theory - and deservedly so. It flawlessly covers all 'the basics': the theory of value and surplus value (ch.1); capital and capitalism [historical bacground, and basic dynamics] (ch.2); and neo-capitalism [role of the state & war] (ch.3). It does all this in tight, non-technical style. For this reason it is THE starting point for the uninitiated. It is important to note, however, that it cannot be more than it's title suggests: an introduction. It does not deal with the criticisms of Marx's theory of value in any depth. Also, it reveals not only its age, and how times have changed by what is emphasises AND what it ignores. In the case of what it emphasises: much is made of the importance of the cold war as a necessary phenomenon. In the case of what it ignores: it understandably says nothing of post-Fordism, ecological concerns, or the emergence of non-socialist oppositional 'social movements' (such as feminism, environmentalism and multiculturalism). These criticisms are hardly relevant to a book such as this: its central goal is to outline the essential message in Marx's 'Das Kapital', and to show (in ch.3) how this message can be applied (with some inevitable modification) to explain (then) current politico-economic events.

A remarkable little book that breaks down and makes crystal clear complex terms: surplus labor, necessary labor, necessary product, surplus product, surplus value, use value, exchange value, commodities, law of value, labor theory of value, etc.
See how despite huge differences in social systems from slavery to feudalism to capitalism, a key fundamental is consistent: most of the value produced by toilers is ceded to a parasitic ruling class. According to the author, that will change only when the laboring masses ourselves become the ruling class. Read this introduction and then read Marx's Wage Labor and Capitol as well as his Value, Price and Profit.

Workers are the ones who produce value. Bosses produce essentially nothing. The profits that bosses make are stolen from the workers This is a central insight of Marxist economics that this book does a good job of explaining. It also has an interesting discussion of "neo-capitalism" which is the form of capitalism that arose after World War II--capitalism that needed massive government intervention to survive. Mandel shows how war spending allows capitalism to avoid major depressions and how social programs blunt the effects of economic crisis on the workers, and thereby postpone revolutionary situations. It's especially interesting to read this book now, thirty years after it was written, since it makes a point of saying that the post-World War II prosperity would not last forever. It didn't and we've now entered a period of history where world economic depression, the rise of fascist movements, and attacks on social programs like welfare, social security, unemployment compensation, etc. are the norm. Mandel's book helps make sense of this miserable system so that we can chart a way forward to destroy it.

Many of us have heard the boss accuse ourselves or other workers of "stealing from the company" by taking an unauthorized break. We suspect that this reasoning is bogus, but how can we describe it from a scientific point of view? This is one of the questions that Marx took up and that Mandel summarizes very succinctly in this book. Why does the boss come out the winner when workers have to work overtime or when so-called labor saving devices are introduced into the workplace? This is another question that Mandel analyzes simply and accurately. In fact, Mandel provides an authoritative outline of Marxist economic theory, from the labor theory of value to what causes worldwide unemployment, depression, and war. Reading this book will help you become a more conscious fighter for our class. While amazon may list this book as unavailable from time to time, it is always available from boksfrompathfinder listed under "new and used" at the top of this page.

Mandel prided himself on having written books which were comprehensible to workers;that he made every effort to write with clarity to ensure that the working class could be made aware of his ideas.A laudable goal given that reading Marx is often like wading through treacle and Engel's arcane style is little better.Unfortunately he must never have been in contact with people who could be honest with him and tell him that he wasn't able to write with clarity and that he left out important pieces of information in his explanations that he wrongly took for granted his reader would understand.My advice is to give all Mandel's books a miss unless you like doing jigsaw puzzles with missing pieces.

This small book is an affordable, alternative choice for a general understanding of what constitutes Marxian economic theory. The major concepts are all mentioned: the theory of value and surplus value, the tendency of the rate of profit to fall, the theory of crises, alienation and so on.

The author successfully explains in simple words the major concepts of Marxian economics, however, the book is by now, outdated. The author refers to the cold war throughout the passage, discusses economic planning (probably the Keynesian trend in government policies which existed before the rise of neoliberalism) and so on. The collapse of the Soviet Union and its satellite states will therefore make a number of his arguments irrelevant and outdated for the current situation. There is also no discussion concerning financial crises, which is of great importance for current economic discussions following the crisis of 2007.

Another point to consider is the bias of the author. He is a Trotskyst, and therefore he offers a good explanation of what Marxian economics are, but not a balanced argument based on its critiques. For a critique of Marxian economics I would advice a reading of Boehm-Bawerk's "Karl Marx and the Close of His System", which can be found online for free.

Overall, this book is a good choice if you are looking for a general explanation of Marxian economics, although the reader should consider the fact that it was written during a very different political and economic climate compared to today.

Here is an interesting, if dated little book. It covers all the basics of Marxist Economics and is very approachable. I would recommend it for anyone who cannot invest the time to read Marx directly or who has read Marx and is wondering, "what next" in terms of relating the theories to the modern world. It is primarily on the latter point that it shows the limitations of its age.

I'm going to give a little spoiler. Here's how the book progresses:

1. Marx productes the Labor theory of value and surplus value, the two most ridiculous value theories in existence (swiped from teh fallacies of Adam SMith and David Ricardo).

2. In order to create a just society, what we need is to give everything to the government (renamed "THE PEOPLE") in order for a bureaucrat to give us back a portion of what we gave in the first place.

3. We can all dance around in infinite piratical bliss, sharing the spoils of universal plunder.

4. If we don't like the situtation, it doesn't matter. The government owns everything anyways, including our complaints, the newspapers, ink, and our very freedom.

THE END