Table Of ContentMarco Piccioni
Production, Value, Distribution
and Employment
PreludetoanAnalysisofChangesinClassRelations
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NichtdenZeitgenossen,nichtdenLandsgenossen...
ArthurSchopenhauer
Contents
Preface
ChapterI
Therealproblemis...
.Centralfeatureofthesurplusapproach,–.Interdependenciesand
basicquestions,.
ChapterII
Themarginalisttreatmentof“collectiveactions”
.Introduction:whyandhowdo“collectiveactions”comeabout?,
–.Problem:“free”individualchoicesvsmarginalistnotionof“free
competition”,–.Marginalistlineofreasoning;Böhm–Bawerkand
Marshall’s thesis on dissolution of “combinations”, – . Universal
coalitionsassumed,–.FirststageofBöhm–Bawerk’sanalysis;all
possiblealternatives;w–rcurve,–.Entrepreneursandcapitalists,
– . Mobility of capital and labour (see Ch. IV), – . Notional
possibilitiesvsrealpossibilities,–.“Free–competition”equilibrium
asrealpossibility,–.SecondstageofBöhm–Bawerk’sanalysis;em-
ployers’ reaction to increased wage; a particular assumption (see Ch.
III),–.Changeinthe“cheapestcombinationoffactors”(seeCh.III);
effectonemployment,–.ThirdstageofBöhm–Bawerk’sanalysis;
unemploymentandunderbidding:anotherparticularassumption(see
Ch.III);arequirementforvalidity(seeCh.III),–.Böhm–Bawerk’s
generalconclusion:theoremisdemonstrated;ananswertotheprob-
lemof§ii:temporaryvslong–runindividualchoices,–.How
Böhm-Bawerk explains persistent “combinations”, – . Marshall
on persistent “combinations”; the “fear of spoiling the market”, –
.MarshallandSmithoncompetition(seeCh.IV),.
ChapterIII
Someissuesoncollectiveactions
. Difficulty as to a requirement for validity (see § II.): in general,
“demandforlabour”maybeinelastic,–.Meaningandimplication
Contents
ofdifficulty,–.Marshallonelasticityof“demandforlabour”and
hoursoflabour,–.Marshallonwagesandexportationofcapital,
–.Summingupandfollowingpoints;threeelementsprovidingthe
groundsforthemarginalistgeneralmethodofconstructingparticular
analyses(see§§II.–),–.Firstelement:relationbetweenrateof
profitsand“capital”/labourratio:acritique,–.Animplicationof
thecritique:“counteractingforces”tendingtodissolveany“combina-
tion”notalwayspossible,–.Furtherimplicationofthecritique:
cases in which persistent “combinations” are even necessary; second
element(indefiniteunderbiddingbyunemployedworkers)shownil-
logical;marginalistclaim(see§II.xiii)contradicted,–.Remarks
onunemployedworkers’behaviour;whythe“free”individualmayar-
riveto,andpersistin,choosingacourseofactionquitedifferentfrom
underbidding, – . “Freedom” and rules, – . Critique of third
element:employers’“free”reactiontoenforcedwage;anexampleof
capitalists’behaviourcontradictingthemarginalistassumption;insti-
tutionsandmethodsofproduction,–.Workers’collectiveaction
influencingmethodsofproduction,–.Acomprehensiveassess-
mentofthemarginalistanalysis:“labourdemandcurve”dissolved;“free
competition”ascontradictioninterms,–.Edgeworthon“com-
binations”and“artofbargaining”,–.Stigleroncompetitionand
social/juridicalnorms,.
ChapterIV
From“combinations”tosocialclasses:changesinclassrelations
andchangesindistributionandemployment
. Particular “combinations” and class “combinations” in Smith, –
. Mobility of capital, land, and labour; why it may induce solidarity
withinaclass“combination”,–.Whytheabovemobilityisnota
“natural”outcomeof“liberty”,–.Smithian“competition”,class
relations,andtheinstitutionalarrangementsofsociety,–.Awide
range of phenomena should be taken into account, – . How to
organizetheirtreatment;ahintfromEngels;whynecessary,univocal,
irreversible“laws”areexcluded,–.Thesurplusapproachtreatment
ofchangesinclassrelations,distribution,andemployment;therangeof
realpossibilities;plausiblescenarios,.
References
Preface
Thisworkistobeconsideredasatentativefirststepintoavastand
complexfieldofresearch—“persassiacuti,edaltarena”.Theauthor
willtrytodevelopinthefuturetheremarkspresentedhere.
IamindebtedtoAntoniaCampusforconstantencouragementand
manystimulatingconversations.
MP
UniversitàdiNapoli“FedericoII”
DipartimentodiEconomia,Management,Istituzioni
ChapterI
The real problem is...
I.Centralfeatureofthesurplusapproach
TheattemptthatshallbemadeinthisworkconsistsinusingSraffa’s
ProductionofCommodities byMeansofCommodities as a fundamental
startingpointfortheanalysisofchangesinclassrelations.
In this half century since its publication, Sraffa’s book has been
praised or criticized by a vast number of commentators, who have
contributedalargeandexpandingliterature.Assomeunderstanding
ofthebookhasbeenprogressing(eventhoughrivalinterpretations
continuetodisputetheground),anawarenesshasalsobeengrowing
that some steps forward can be taken as to using Sraffa’s analytical
tools — above all the wage–rate–of–profits curve — in order to de-
velop,alongsurplus–approachlines,analysesofdistribution,growth,
technicalchange,andinstitutionaltransformation .
Wecanbegintoseewhatthiscomplexresearchprogramimplies,
ifwereflectonthe“centralfeature”ofthesurplusapproach,i.e.«the
kind of explanation given for the division of the product between
wages and profits» — an explanation “in which institutional and
customaryelementsplayacentralrole”,becausetheyareintertwined
withthe«bargainingpositionofthegroupsinvolved» .
Now, although it is reasonable to treat the matter by relying not
onlyonabstractargumentsbutalsoonhistoryandstatistics,however,
. Amongthemodernanalysesthathavebeenattemptedalongthelinespointedout
above,wecanciteGaregnani’sremarksonwages(disseminatedoverseveralarticles;see
forinstance:b,§§–),andPivetti’sessayondistribution().Severalotherstudies
onthementionedissueshaveclaimedsomeconnectionwithSraffa’swork,butitwould
takealongdiscussiontoassesswhetherwecanreallytraceineachofthemconnections
withProductionofCommodities,or,moregenerally,withthesurplusapproach.
. G(b),p..
. G(b),p..
Production,Value,DistributionandEmployment
itseemsdifficulttocarryoutappliedresearchontheissuewithoutan
adequatetheoreticalexaminationof“bargainingpower”and“social
classes”.
II.Interdependenciesandbasicquestions
As a first step, we can note that the notion of social class is better
understoodwhenwelookattherelationsbetweenclasses,andthese
relations,intheirturn,arebetterunderstoodwhenwelookattheir
changes,andconsiderhoweconomicandsocialphenomenainteract
withthem.
Thesechangesinclassrelationsareinterdipendentlylinkedwith
changesinhowthesurplusisproduced,distributed,andutilized.Thus,
justtoprovideaquickoverview,weshouldtoconsider:howchanges
inwages,profitsandrentsarelinkedbyanecessaryrelationspringing
fromthetechnicalconditionsofproduction;howeachclassmayreact
tochangesinitsshareofsocialnetproduct;howthesereactionsmay
influencechangesinconsumptionandinvestments;howthesemay
bring about further effects on technical conditions of production;
theconsequentpossiblechangesinemployment;thepossiblefeed–
back effects that may react on wages and/or profits and/or rents
(througheffectsonpowerrelationsand/ortechnicalconditions);the
institutionaltransformationsthatmaybeintertwinedwithallthese
changes.
Dealing with this network of relations also involves such basic
questionsas:
Arethedifferentrelationsofthesamenature?
Is it possible, and in which sense, that some of those relations be
shapedbythe“collectiveaction”ofanysocialclass?
Howarewegoingtostudythoserelationsandcollectiveactions?
Thereadershouldnotexpectthepresentworktosolveall,orany,
ofthoseproblems.Weshallratherlimitourselvestosubmittingsome
hintsonhowwecanaddressatleastsomeaspectsofthoseissuesby
usingProductionofCommodities.
