Understanding Marxism

by Richard D. Wolff

Why should we pay attention to the great social critics like Marx? American, especially now, confront serious questions and evidences that our capitalist system is in trouble. It clearly serves the 1% far, far better than what it is doing to the vast mass of the people.

Marx was a social critic for whom capitalism was not the end of human history. It was just the latest phase and badly needed the transition to something better. We offer this essay now because of the power and usefulness today of Marx’s criticism of the capitalist economic system.

Genres: Politics, Economics, Nonfiction, Philosophy, History, Theory, Society

100 pages, Paperback

First published February 1, 2019

About the author

Richard D. Wolff is an American economist, well-known for his work on Marxian economics, economic methodology, and class analysis. He is Professor of Economics Emeritus, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, and currently a Visiting Professor in the Graduate Program in International Affairs of the New School University in New York. Wolff has also taught economics at Yale University, City University of New York, University of Paris I (Sorbonne), and The Brecht Forum in New York City. In 2010, Wolff published Capitalism Hits the Fan: The Global Economic Meltdown and What to Do About It, also released as a DVD. He will release three new books in 2012: Occupy the Economy: Challenging Capitalism, with David Barsamian (San Francisco: City Lights Books), Contending Economic Theories: Neoclassical, Keynesian, and Marxian, with Stephen Resnick (Cambridge, MA, and London: MIT University Press), and Democracy at Work (Chicago: Haymarket Books).

Reviews

[The Conspiracy is Capitalism · Rating 4 out of 5]

Professor Wolff revives revolutionary pamphlets in the belly of the beast…

The Good:
--Revolutionary pamphlets have been invaluable in Marxism (The Communist Manifesto) and American history (Paine’s Common Sense), given the format’s effectiveness in promoting political activism (Educate, Agitate, Organize!).
--Those who follow Wolff’s public lectures (https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list...) will be familiar with the key points Wolff uses to introduce bogeyman Marx to audiences fed on Red Scare/American Exceptionalism:

1) Despite all the various scapegoats, perhaps it’s finally time to consider the deeper structure, the production and distribution of surplus, and the logic of the system (i.e. capitalism).
2) In any fair analysis, you cannot just consider one side (pro-capitalists, which capitalism promotes). Enter Marx...
3) Marx was inspired by the American Revolution (democracy) and French Revolution (liberty, equality, fraternity). But he realized capitalism’s limitations:

i) Employer-employee exploitation:
a) Capitalism still involved class divisions, creating a division between employers and employees.
b) The employees’ labour power can be divided into necessary labour (enough to allow employees to reproduce themselves, i.e. social reproduction, given as wages) and surplus labour (additional labour to create surplus which is appropriated by employers, i.e. exploitation).
c) Labour can be divided into productive labour (directly produce surplus) and unproductive labour (live off distribution of surplus).
d) The employers (minority) dictate decision-making by appropriating the surplus; employees are forced into dependency. Democracy is not present here. Economic democracy (Wolff's emphasis at Democracy@Work) would entail productive labourers making the decisions on a one-person-one-vote basis. Wolff's full book: Democracy at Work: A Cure for Capitalism.

ii) Contradictions leading to crises:
a) Capitalism is driven by profits, a certain amount of competition, and labour as a commodity (i.e. labour market). Structural contradictions lead to inequality and instability…
b) To maximize profits (survive competition), individual capitalists are encouraged to cut costs. One key method is to reduce wages (switch to different cheaper labour/automation), which on a systemic level can lead to insufficient effective demand (not enough wages to buy commodities produced) causing a recession. This is part of capitalism’s instability (boom/bust cycles), uneven development (capitalists seek profits detached from community needs, i.e. outsource/automation/capital flight leading to structural unemployment) and class struggle.

The Missing:
--After writing this review, I was impressed how much was packed into the short pamphlet. Next steps:
1) Varoufakis' brilliant Another Now: Dispatches from an Alternative Present first spells out today's capitalism, where power lies the Financial sector's ability to conjure value from the future and bring it to the present (debt instruments/private money), and how this cascades into the real economy. Next, Varoufakis synthesizes alternatives:
i) micro: one-person one-share one-vote (economic democracy) and personal capital accounts with central banks (public banking) needed to abolish the roots of capitalist property rights (stock market, labour market and private banking)
ii) macro: international trade accounting system to end US dollar imperialism (where US's national currency is also used as the international reserve currency). Details: Super Imperialism: The Origin and Fundamentals of U.S. World Dominance
2) Varoufakis’ Talking to My Daughter About the Economy: or, How Capitalism Works—and How It Fails, provides a broader (yet still accessible!) over of capitalism's contradictions, synthesizing the 2 Karl's (Marx and Polanyi; for more, see the comments of this review) regarding capitalism's 3 peculiar markets (labour/land/money) which feature "fictitious commodities" (since humans/nature/purchasing power are not "produced" just for selling/buying in markets) as well as incorporating the magic of banking and financial uncertainty.
3) Marx's Capital project:
-intro context: Marx's Das Kapital: A Biography
-companion: A Companion to Marx's Capital
-source: Capital: A Critique of Political Economy, Volume 1
4) Imperialism:
-intro to real-world conditions: The Divide: A Brief Guide to Global Inequality and its Solutions
-dive into applying theory to real-world: Capital and Imperialism: Theory, History, and the Present

[David Stephens · Rating 4 out of 5]

In his typically clear and austere manner, professor emeritus Richard Wolff lays out the foundations of Marxist theory. He focuses on Marx's surplus theory, which deals with the ways that business surpluses get transferred from the productive laborers to the capitalist class often with the help of the managers.

Most importantly, he addresses one of the main misconceptions about Marxism: that Marx advocated for state run economic systems. While later Marxists have interpreted some of his comments this way, according to Wolff, there is virtually nothing in Marx's body of work that supports this. Instead, Marx's main contention was to break up the employer/employee dichotomy. This manifested itself as master and slave under slavery, lord and serf under feudalism, and currently as employer and employee under capitalism. And it is the perpetuation of this schism between the capitalist class and the laboring class that is the problem. According to Wolff, “Nationalization or socialization of the means of production will not get us beyond capitalism in so far as it retains the employer versus employee dichotomy.” What we need instead is to democratize the workforce and overall economy by instituting worker cooperatives.

If you listen to Wolff's podcast like I do, there isn't too much new information to be learned here. However, he does connect some foundational ideas that don't necessarily get connected through each episode. I know this is basically a primer to answer the most basic questions about Marxism, but the book's biggest issue is that it's too brief. I'm sure that with just a little bit of extra information, he could have dispelled many of the other commonplace myths out there.

[Magnus Bernhardsen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very basic introduction, might be useful in a study circle or discussion group just to get everyone on the same page about what Marxism is.

[Nathan Fisher · Rating 1 out of 5]

I understand that value theory is daunting, but if you think it's the foundational core of Marx's thought then the temptation to reduce it to the distribution of "surpluses" (spoken of here as if tangible objects — at one point 'blue' and 'white' collar are considered an example of 'productive' and 'unproductive' labor, all of which is wrong thrice over) is simply unacceptable. Were 'understanding Marxism' as simple as understanding the concept of exploiters and exploited, his reputation would be hard to comprehend. It is not the obvious discovery of 'haves' and 'have nots.' What is more, while it is encouraging to see more and more writings on Marxism, the bar for introductory material has to eventually be raised, considering we live in an unprecedented era in which the most sophisticated readings of Capital are widely available to us. Despite an overflow of such attempts, 'Value, Price and Profit' remains the best pamphlet-length introduction to Marxism, for kinda obvious reasons, despite being an oversimplified rendition of an incomplete theory.

[Jason P · Rating 5 out of 5]

Tbh, I was skeptical when I got my hands on it because this pamphlet is extremely short, so I feared it would be overly simplistic. However, it turned out to be a rather charming introduction into Marxist theory. Richard Wolff has found his niche in explaining Marxist economics in a manner which is accessible to virtually any reader no matter if they have a background in philosophy or economics. This is something I think we should appreciate. My only major criticism is that due to this simplification those which read this pamphlet, but do not read the direct source material very likely will have a big learning curve when entering more nuanced discussions on Marxism. However, that's ok.

[Awaz Mebashar · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very short and well-written pamphlet on Marxism.

[George Dimarelos · Rating 4 out of 5]

Did you know Marx didn't technically come up with a specific way to do "Marxism"? All he did was show the flaws in Capitalism and voice some general thoughts on how a system designed to avoid those flaws might look.

Thats a fun fact, true Comrades?

[Mustakim · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5/5

[Tay · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've listened to Professor Wolff's YouTube lectures and podcasts before. He is extremely talented at breaking down an obviously complex and contentious subject and explaining it in a clear, concise, easy-to-remember manner. This book, Understanding Marxism, does all of that, in written form. Highly recommended.

[Pedro Rentas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another author’s approach to Marxist thought

I have always found Karl Marx’s writings convoluted and open to numerous interpretations, but this book presented a different approach, which I found interesting and insightful. It presents an interpretation of Marxism that most readers will find thought provoking, whether one is for or against this political philosophy.

[Shawn · Rating 5 out of 5]

A short, succinct read on the fundamentals of Marx’s Capital. I read this after reading Richard Wolf’s Democracy at Work, becoming a big fan of his approachable writing style. I also recommend watching his podcast, Economic Update!

[Ietrio · Rating 1 out of 5]

Other academic paper pushers in the Socialist countries of the Eastern Europe spent even longer hours explaining Marx. But they were all wrong! Wolff is here to channel the bearded spirit of Marx and save you from the fake prophets.

[Alexandre · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you're disillusioned with capitalism but don't really know why exactly or what an alternative system could look like, this is a great quick essay (~30 pages) that will give you a basic overview of Marx's theories.

[Ryan Ward · Rating 4 out of 5]

A succinct and accessible introduction to Marx's critique of capitalism. He realized that capitalism could never fully bring about the freedom, liberty, and democracy its proponents claimed because it is a system built on exploitation of the majority by the minority.

[Yash Arya · Rating 1 out of 5]

Easy to read and quick intro to Marxism. Some topics (such as Hegel's influence on Marx) weren't covered in as much detail as I'd like but it is to be expected given the length of this book, so no complaints there.

I read this book in conjunction with his lectures on Intro to Marxian Economics that follow more or less the same structure but with more details in some places. Please note: My review assumes that Richard Wolff accurately represents Marx's views.

Lecture 1: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list...
Key ideas.

* Marx was inspired by the ideals of the French and American Revolution: Liberty, Equality, Fraternity, and Democracy. (The book/lectures don't provide further clarification exactly what these meant in the context of French/American revolution - so this is background knowledge).

* To a Marxist, theories aren't right or wrong. They are just different. To ask which theory is right or wrong is as if to ask "what's the right way to eat? With a fork or with your hands?" This is likely a legacy of Hegel. Based solely on the contents of the lecture, I'm unconvinced by this utter Subjectivist approach. It also takes away any grounds to talk about whether Marxism is better than Capitalism.

* In every society, not everyone who consumes goods is involved in production. This means that some must produce more than they consume themselves. This is called a surplus.

* Surplus labor: Of a worker's total productive output, part of it is returned to them in the form of wages. This is called their "necessary labor". The rest of the output is retained by the Capitalist, who decides what to do with it. This is called "surplus labor". The value obtained from this surplus labor may be reinvested towards replenishing raw materials, supporting those who do not work (eg: sick/elderly) or supporting unproductive labor.

* According to Marx, unproductive labor is labor that does not directly produce a surplus but is still required by the business. For example, managers, security guards, lawyers, entertainers, etc.

The above examples give the impression that providing a service is somehow considered inferior to producing a commodity. That isn't true. Also, a service provider may just as well be producing a surplus: A security guard who provides security for 8 hours a day isn't consuming any security himself. Furthermore, say the security guard is hired as a contractor through a different company. For that company, the guard must be providing productive labor - otherwise why is the company paying him a wage? There are other things that Marx's analysis misses in terms of who produces and receives a surplus which I'll cover later.

* Exploitative system: The word exploitation has a special meaning to Marx. A system is exploitative if those who produce a surplus aren't the ones who get to keep and decide what to do with the surplus.

Marx talks about 5 types of political/economic systems and classifies them as either being exploitative or not.
1. Slavery: Master/Slave relationship. Slave produces the surplus, Master keeps the surplus. Exploitative.
2. Feudalism: Lord/Serf relationship: Serf produces the surplus, Lord keeps the surplus. Exploitative.
3. Capitalism: Employer/Employee: Employee produces the surplus, Employer keeps the surplus. Exploitative.
4. Self-Employed: The person producing the surplus keeps the surplus. Not exploitative.
5. Communism: The group of workers producing the surplus keep the surplus. Not exploitative. Wolff is a proponent of Worker Coops where the productive and unproductive workers vote to decide what to do with the surplus.

Never mind that the basis of the Master/Slave, Lord/Serf relationship is coercion. The basis of the Employer/Employee relationship is mutual consent for mutual benefit. Furthermore, Capitalism is not narrowly limited to an Employer/Employee relationship. It's about "voluntary" exchanges for mutual benefit. If you think it's better to be self-employed or be a part of a worker co-op, go ahead. The core idea of Capitalism is the separation between the State and the Market, in the same way as Secularism is the separation between the State and the Church.

Lecture 2: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list...
This lecture covers more detail than his book.

* Commodity: A product of labor that goes from producer from consumer by means of a market exchange.
* If a good/service is exchanged through means other than a market, then it is not a commodity. Other ways may include - giving in charity, helping out at home, some central authority deciding who gets how much of what, voting, etc.
* Marx didn't like markets, but he did not spend a lot of time criticizing them on Economic grounds. His objections were ethical and aesthetic. Wolff gives a bunch of non-economic objections to market.
* Wolff says that the concept of Efficiency is bogus because a) an act has infinite consequences, and so you cannot honestly know all the costs and benefits and b) you cannot separate the consequences of an act from other correlations. If you're not a religious person, you shouldn't use the concept of efficiency. If you are a religious person, it is the equivalent of saying "because god says so". He also says he has used this (sic) bogus concept of cost/benefit analysis to prove any point he was paid to prove. (This is the definition of intellectual dishonesty. If Wolff were a taxi driver, I suppose he would take you all around the city to take you from one block to the next block. There is no such thing as efficiency, after all. That'll be $1000, thanks.)
* Labor Theory of Value: Smith/Riccardo - Concrete Labor, Marx - Abstract Labor.
* More discussion on surplus value.

Even though Marx has his own version of the Labor Theory of Value, he inherits the errors of the classical economists (Smith, Riccardo).
https://www.learnliberty.org/blog/why...

Lecture 3: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list...
Lecture 4: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list...

[Harry Goodwin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I finished something, yes it was an essay, but still!
Ever since embarking on educating myself about Marx I have been a huge fan of Wolff: he writes and speaks with a thoroughly-explained clarity that is all too rare in modern discourse. I simply love listening to him speak. This is an excellent primer on Marxism, most of which was a nice reminder, but great to read no matter what. I would love to read his more fully fleshed works.
What has happened this year! In between working and a horrible health-related battle I have just been leap-frogging promiscuously between multiple books for months. It's not super groovy, but I'm finally getting out of that rut and am close to finishing quite a few things! Yucka. Anyway catch ya later.

[Hector · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book has some strong sections, but not only is it grossly overpriced; Wolff’s reading of Marx is highly unorthodox. He passes his own opinions off as Marx’s and pretends everyone else has just been misreading him for the past century and a half. If you want to understand Marxism, you’re better off reading Marx! Sure, “capital” is a cinderblock of a book and a super tough read, but I recommend you read “wage labor and capital and value price and profit” instead. Much better book, much cheaper, and straight from the horse’s mouth.

[Jay · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very well written, easily the best "intro to Marx" book I have found so far.

[Zachary Shepherd · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my favorite essays on not just the work of Marx but an elaboration and a retelling of so many revolutionary ideas

[Christian Adams · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good read.

Nice short read for a basic understanding of Marxism. Wolf implies Marx would have been for employee owned workplaces. Which he could have been.

[Fraser Hansen · Rating 4 out of 5]

A short and simple book, but a solid primer on the basics of Marxist theory.

[Toomas Tuul · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was looking for a primer on Marxism and found this.

First of all, finding a neutral analysis on Marxism had been really difficult. Most of the books seem to be more into Leninism or the Soviet system and not the early sociology and the criticism of capitalism that Marx published in the mid to late 19th century.

I first listened to Richard D. Wolff in an episode of the Lex Fridman podcast and found his neutral and curious analysis on Marxism in the United States compelling. I would recommend that episode to anyone interested in politics.

This essay however is the intro to the intro of Marxism. It's perfect for the stereotypical American who associates Marxism only with "commies!", but if you've read the Wikipedia article on Marxism or seen the aforementioned podcast episode, you probably won't learn anything new.

In conclusion, a short 2-hour very basic intro to the philosophy of Marxism and into the concepts of capital, production and surplus.

[Zack · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was more a quick essay than anything else - tacked on at the end of Understanding Socialism. It's still definitely worth your time, but I'll just include a favorite quote from the essay as my review.

"...Capitalism's proponents and celebrants often make the same mistakes as proponents and celebrants of slavery and feudalism before them. They imagine, wishfully, that their system is the end of history. That their preferred system is as good as it can ever be. That human kind cannot do better.

Every single one of those people have been proven wrong. Why, then, believe people who tell us today that we can't do better than Capitalism?"

[Joseph Barnet · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good introduction for understanding the thought and philosophy of Karl Marx. Regardless of whether you agree/disagree with Marx's thought, this little book should serve as a helpful introduction with becoming more familiar with his philosophical underpinnings to his ideas. I had already read some of Marx's work before reading this introduction, but this book certainly would have been helpful to read prior to engaging with the primary sources.

[Rick-Phil · Rating 4 out of 5]

Of course, the coolest attribute of this book is its caricature of Wolff on the back, which is rivaled by the stylish rendering of Marx on the cover. Like Marx's hand, we are invited to go toward the heart of an important intellectual tradition and thinker's hearts.

This book sets out to give its reader a basic understanding of Marxism, which boils down to class and surplus theory. For Wolff, these are the most elementary contributions of Karl Marx that Marixsts employ for interpretation. Wolff's essay is quite accessible as he explains these two elements after discussing the relevance of Marx today, especially for the US where Marx is beginning to lose his caricature as boogeyman. To establish Marxism' relevancy, or perhaps its relatability, Wolff discusses the motivation of Marx's work: an imminent critique concerned with the promises of liberty, equality, fraternity, and democracy (as the revolution of France, and perhaps even that of the US, once cried out for) concerned with their failure to instantiate. For Wolff, Marx's criticism is sort of German Historical in that that it focuses on the economic systems of slavery and feudalism as they compare to capitalism. From here, Wolff finds that Marx develops class structure and surplus theory while also detailing an account of the access to the afore values. Wolff concludes with what might be his thetic contribution to Marxism, or at least what has become his most publicly vocal point, Marx's contribution is the interest in the next phase of society and its realization of those values, which is not through an omnipotent state, but an end to "employer-employee" relationships through a democratic workplace, or co-op. Marxism, Wolff suggests, would be hard-pressed to come up with textual evidence that Marx's interest is the ongoing use of the government to construct and maintain a socialist, or free, society. Instead, Marxism is poised to provide arguments and interpretations and activities toward the co-op and a transition within workplaces; this position is poised as Marx's interest and his work's trajectory, which is a revolution within workplaces that democratizes them. The co-op is Wolff's answer moreso than Marx's, yet there does appear to be consistency in the argument.

While the book certainly accomplishes its goal, I would suggest a bit of criticism. First, Marxism has disseminated into so many distinct schools of thought from the Marxism that Baudrillard and Foucault found in France, spurring some of their own critiques of Marxism and capitalism, as well as that of the Frankfurt School to the Marxism that Lenin and Luxembourg disagreed over to Zizek and Wolff's own different interests and evaluations of Marxism today. My main criticism of this book may be that I am not its targets audience. I am more interested in the discussion I sketched above, which is cursory at best. Marxism is an interesting school of thought, and one that continues to change each decade it seems. Yet, as Foucault once remarked: "Marxism exists in the nineteenth-century thought like a fish in water: that is, it is unable to breathe anywhere else". Although a controversial remark, I think Foucault has an important point about Marxism's epistemic conditions, or habitat. Modernity's maturation from its nascent years has brought about new complexities and changes that challenge notions of Marxism such as the shift away from Ricardo-esque production toward increased administrative roles and service roles. I do not mean by these marks that Marxism is dead and has nothing relevant to offer, instead I would argue that Marxism is not quite what stereotypes, nor Marxists, make it out to be. Even Wolff suggests that the state-centric Marxism is questionable as Marxism. My interest is a more critical and unbiased study of Marxism as a traveler might a civilization's culture and architecture that intrigues them along their journey. While this short book is helpful and interesting, accomplishing its intent, I do not think Marxism, which seems sort of univocal for Marx's thought and varying subsequent interpretations of Marx, should or will transcend itself. In truth, I am more interested in postmodernist conceptions of capitalism, yet I value Marx and other pupils like Wolff's engaging conversations and ideas.

I would also suggest that what Wolff has really accomplished in this book is discussion of Marx as down-to-Earth, or normal. In some ways, Marx reminds me of someone like John Stuart Mill who is far more critical of capitalism and its structural consistency with their values, which provides a suspicion toward economic interests and activities as well as intellectual and simply human. I would think that someone never exposed to Marx or Marxism could easily grasp this short essay and find some of their worldview appropraitely challenged as Marx's critique does not seem to be at risk of its jarring insights and suspicions becoming vestiges. I would certainly recommend this book, to anyone who is unfamiliar with Marx and Marxism, particularly those who have not listened to Global Capitalism Live Update, which I find to be Wolff's most interesting work at present.

[Jeffrey Myers · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the clearest explanation of Marxism I have ever read.

[Anaghaa (theladyliterati) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Extremely accessible for anyone looking into starting out understanding Marx’s work.

[Urs · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sehr klar, gut verständlich, basisch, interessant, informativ.
Dabei aber etwas zu wenig Begeisterung.

[Ben Would · Rating 3 out of 5]

Marxism in Layman’s terms. Easily understandable analogy, but too biased in in favour of Marxism to be critiqued honestly.

[Bassam Ahmed · Rating 5 out of 5]

An essay on Marxism in a book written by Dr. Richard Wolff - a Professor of Economics and a Marxist - titled "Understanding Marxism" which was published in 2018.

Wolff aim from his essay as stated in page 74, is to use the Marxist critique, analyses and theories about capitalism to come up with a solution to the sequence of crisises caused by capitalism and its destructive contradictions. And to that Wolff did simply Marx's main theories - Ex. Surplus Value theory, Class Struggle theory, etc. - to the average reader and for the American Average reader in specific, using the American and French (Westren) revolution slogans "in France, liberty, equality, brotherhood and in the US, democracy" as a reference point and the base for his argument.

Wolff did highlight on the capitalism contradictions and defects and how it did prevent the American society from achieving true liberty and equality nor democracy, on the other hand he tried to challenge the Westren (Capitalist) propaganda that linked Marx theories and legacy to totalitarianism and state dictatorship, where that propaganda aimed to smear marx's school of thought to sustain the reproduction of capitalism and the monopoly of capital and power by the minority (Burglaries and corporate owners).

The main idea that the Auther did focus on and advocate for to help in changing the current situation from the ruthless capitalism to a better economic/production system is the "Economical Democracy", one of Marx's concepts.

Moreover, using quotes from Marx as an opening to each chapter was a pleasant gesture, and the simple un complicated writing style do add value and boost the books "reach" to a large segment of readers.

On the other hand what was missed in this book from marxism and Marx legacy was significant, for example on the economic aspect (Alienation theory, propsed solutions Marx provided to overcome capitalism, and his theory on Communism), just to mention few, while the auther did not address as well the philosophical aspect of Marxism, where his theories of the of "Historical Materialism", "Continues Revolutions", "societies consist of two parts: the base (or substructure) and superstructure theory" and the "Proletariat Dictatorship" (which means the democracy for the majority), just to mention few, which make the picture incomplete, thus a comprehensive understanding of Marxism from this book content only, not possible.

To summarise, the book represents a good entry to Marx's Critique to capitalism, yet further reading are essential to enable comprehensive understanding of Marx's legacy and theories, thus enable the professional to inspire by it and using it properly to generate sufficient -marxist- solutions to nowadays capitalism criess.

Marx theories are more important today than it was when he originally wrote it, where his predictions of capitalism cycle of crisises did materials as facts, and the capitalism threats to the human societies become more serious than ever, thus finding a solution to overcome this economical model to more human and effective model that enable the achievement of fairness, equality and democracy in the society on all levels. The Irony here is, as long as the Capitalist and Capitalism prevails, the attention and the urgency need of Marx's legacy and to explore his theories will prevail as a result of the first.

Important book, highly recommended.

Quotes:

"Marxism always was the critical shadow of capitalism. Their interactions changed them both. Now Marxism is once again stepping into the light as capitalism shakes from its own excesses and confronts decline. Hopefully this essay can help our era's renewal of Marxism." Page 3

"The history of all hitherto existing society is the history of class struggles." Page 5 *Karl Marx

"American capitalism's rush into extreme inequality undermined the widespread assertion that "capitalism delivers the goods," or at least exposed that it delivered a lot more to the 1% than to the other 99%." Page 10

"The last few years have thus seen a global renewal of critical attitudes toward capitalism. Those evolved quickly into renewed interest in studying what capitalism's critics have to say and offer as a systemic alternative. This essay reflects and also seeks to contribute to those renewals." Page 10

"For the last 200 years, capitalism's leading critics have been Karl Marx and the diverse tendencies deeply influenced by Marx's work. In other words, Marxism has been the leading tradition of thought and practice critical of capitalism. It represents the ideas and experiences accumulated across generations around the globe who tried and try to move society beyond capitalism using Marx's critical insights. Marx and Marxism are as important on the side of criticizing capitalism as Adam Smith, David Ricardo, and John Maynard Keynes are on the side of those who celebrate capitalism." Page 10

"The mode of production of material life determines the social, political and intellectual life process in general." Page 13 *Karl Marx

"Marx particularly embraced their key demands: in France, liberty, equality, brotherhood and in the US, democracy." Page 15

"He discovered that the reason why capitalism failed to realize liberty, equality, fraternity and democracy, was that its own structure and social effects were themselves obstacles to realizing those lofty goals. In making that discovery, Marx retained those goals as his own." Page 17

"Marx eventually drew the conclusion that genuine progress toward achieving liberty, equality, fraternity and democracy required a change of economic system from capitalism to what he called socialism." Page 17

"Marx eventually drew the conclusion that genuine progress toward achieving liberty, equality, fraternity and democracy required a change of economic system from capitalism to what he called socialism." Page 19

"This result can be expressed by dividing the length of the slaves' working days into two portions: one is the portion whose products are returned to the slaves for their consumption. Marx called this the slaves' "necessary labor." The second portion of the slaves' labor yields products kept and used by the master; Marx called this "surplus labor." It was labor done by slaves beyond that necessary for whatever level of reproduction masters allowed them." Page 20

"The same sort of reasoning applies to feudalism. There the serf is assigned land to cultivate part of the time and with the proviso that the products of that time on that land are to be kept by the serf for the consumption of his/her family unit. Another portion of the serf's working time is assigned to be done on the domain of the lord who also keeps the product of that portion. Necessary labor is then what the serf does on the land assigned to him/her, while surplus labor is that portion of the serf's total labor time deployed on the lord's domain. Marx referred to slaves and serfs as "exploited" laborers precisely because (and to the extent that) a portion of their labor and its products were appropriated by persons other than the laborers themselves" page 20

"Marx's argument then hits home: capitalism remains like slavery and feudalism because (1) it too divides the participants producing and distributing goods and services into two groups (employers and employees), and (2) it too divides the laborer's working day into necessary and surplus portions." Page 21

"The revenue from that total product sold is composed of one part that equals the cost of the inputs used up in producing that total product; that part is normally used to replace those used-up inputs. The rest of the employer's revenue is divided into two portions: one is given to the employee as wages, while the other is retained by the employer for their consumption or use. Wages are the products of the laborer's necessary labor time; revenues retained by the employer are the products of the laborer's surplus labor time." Page 21

"The "free" laborer of capitalism - the person who sells his/her labor power in exchange for wages - is exploited just like the "unfree" labor of slaves and serfs. Capitalism, Marx said, never went beyond those." Page 21-22

"A dominated and exploited majority was still there but with its new name: employees. As had happened with slavery and feudalism, capitalism's dominant minority played and plays the dominant social role. Employers control the politicians and the direction of social development; they make all key decisions in the workplace; they run the show. The masses of people are subordinated." Page 22

"The human being is in the most literal sense a political animal, not merely a gregarious animal, but an animal which can individuate itself only in the midst of society." Page 25 *Karl Marx

"But not all people work, not all use their brains and muscles to transform nature. There are always parts of each human society - large and small - that do not work. Those parts survive if and only if the members of the society who do work produce more than they themselves consume. That output exceeding what the workers themselves consume is what Marx means by a surplus." Page 28

"He sees that difference as having all sorts of important implications for the two groups of workers' different attitudes toward the existing system, toward projects of going beyond that system, etc." Page 30 *Slave System

"The value added (to the value of the tools. equipment and raw materials used up in production) by each worker's hour of labor exceeds the value paid to the worker for that hour's labor. The difference between value added and wage paid is the surplus produced by the worker in a capitalist enterprise." Page 32

"Marx's conclusion follows: to achieve liberty, equality, brotherhood and democracy in any society, any exploitative production relationship must be excluded." Page 33-34

"In capitalism, most workers are trapped into being either a wage-earner producing surplus for an employer or else a wage-earner serving an employer and living off the distribution of some other productive worker's surplus. Freedom requires changing the system because otherwise you are forever trapped in it." Page 34

"Marx argues that exploitative societies typically use their surpluses to maintain that exploitation. Masters use the surplus taken from slaves to maintain slavery; lords use their serfs' surplus to maintain feudalism. Capitalists likewise use the surplus appropriated from productive workers to reproduce the social relations of capitalism, the society of employers and employees.This means giving capitalists and their delegated representatives the dominant positions not only in the economy but also in politics and culture." Page 34-35

"In capitalism - a hundred years ago, fifty years ago, or right now - it's the employer class that is socially dominant. Marx's contribution was to locate in production the fundamental mechanism whereby this domination is secured." Page 35

"However, unlike those others, Marx also invented and used another, different concept of class: one based on his surplus analysis. There was the class of surplus producers, the class of surplus appropriators, and the class of those receiving shares of the surplus distributed to them by the appropriators. The conflicts among them undermined capitalists' often-repeated commitments to liberty, equality, brotherhood and democracy." Page 36

"The class conflicts Marx focused his attention on (for example in Marx's three volumes of Capital) were chiefly about the production and distribution of the surplus and only secondarily about the social distributions of property and power." Page 37

"As in private life one differentiates between what a man thinks and says of himself and what he really is and does, so in historical struggles one must still more distinguish the language and the imaginary aspirations of parties from their real organism and their real interests, their conception of themselves from their reality." Page 39 *Karl Marx

"A distinguishing sign of capitalism is that the ability to work - labor power -itself becomes a commodity to be bought and sold. Labor power was not a commodity in the slave and feudal economic systems." Page 41

"Capitalist businesses obtain revenues, money earned by selling their output commodities. Their revenues typically exceed the sum of money spent buying input commodities (the tools, equipment and raw materials used up in production) plus money spent buying labor power. In short, revenues exceed costs of production. That excess is the surplus." Page 41-42

"One implication of Marx's analysis is that the class of employers will always seek to reduce the wages paid to their hired, productive laborers. Likewise, employers will always seek to lengthen the time and pace of work." Page 42

revenues typically exceed the sum of money spent buying input commodities (the tools, equipment and raw materials used up in production) plus money spent buying labor power. In short, revenues exceed costs of production. That excess is the surplus.

"One implication of Marx's analysis is that the class of employers will always seek to reduce the wages paid to their hired, productive laborers. Likewise, employers will always seek to lengthen the time and pace of work." Page 42

"As we discuss further below, the more surplus the capitalist can get from the surplus-producing laborers, the more funds the capitalist has to consume, grow, compete and secure the system that puts the capitalist on top." Page 42

"Class struggle is the unavoidable result of capitalism." Page 43

"Over the last three centuries, capitalism has successfully reproduced itself while spreading to become the dominant organization of production in the world. However, as Marx pointed out, capitalism's operations and reproduction were as "efficient" in producing wealth as in producing poverty. Poverty has proved to be a continuing "problem" for capitalism that it never eradicated." Page 43

"For Marx, to eradicate poverty you need to change to an economic system other than capitalism." Page 43

"As capitalist, he is only capital personified. His soul is the soul of capital. But capital has one single life impulse, the tendency to create value and surplus-value, to make its constant factor, the means of production, absorb the greatest possible amount of surplus-labour." Page 45 *Karl Marx

"Those who rule societies need desperately to believe and have others believe their positions are permanent." Page 48

"Hegel remarks somewhere that all great world-historic facts and personages appear, so to speak, twice. He forgot to add: the first time as a tragedy, the second time as a farce." Page 55 *Karl Marx

"Every four to seven years on average, wherever it has existed, capitalism produced an economic downturn. Workers suddenly lost jobs, businesses collapsed, and real mass suffering ensued for months or years." Page 60-61

"Marx's basic point is that capitalism produces anc reproduces inequality and instability. That alone suggests we ought to challenge anyone who accepts a system that works this way." Page 61

"Marx also provided us with the knowledge that the next system must be one in which the organization of the surplus is democratic, where those who produce the surplus are identical with those who appropriate it and where the productive and unproductive laborers together and democratically decide who gets what portions of the surplus to perform what social services." Page 61-62

"The philosophers have only interpreted the world, in various ways. The point, however, is to change it." Page 65 *Karl Marx

"Marx never suggested, contrary to what so many have said, that the state - the government - had to play some sort of ongoing, central role in what this future post-capitalist world would look like." Page 67-68

"In this view, democratizing the workplace is how we conceptualize "doing better" than capitalism." Page 69

"If you believe that freedom for adults requires a democratic social environment, then that democracy must include your workplaces. That is where most adults spend most of their time, or at least major parts of it. Thus the solution for capitalism's problems requires transforming the capitalist workplace. What must go is the top-down, dichotomized hierarchy of employer at the top, mass of employees at the bottom. Instead, workplaces become democratic institutions where everyone has an equal say on what happens there." Page 69-70

"After all, ridding ourselves of kings, czars and emperors proceeded on the grounds that subjection to a tiny group of people making all basic political decisions for all of us was unacceptable. The same logic can apply to economics; indeed that is one way to grasp Marx's argument." Page 70

"The democratization of politics has been a mantra, has been a slogan, and has been a goal for a long time. Marx asks: why only the democratization of politics? Why not the democratization of the economy?" Page 70

"To go a step further, Marx effectively argues that a genuine political democracy requires an economic democracy as its ground and partner." Page 70

"One implication of Marx's gesturing towards a different, democratic way of organizing workplaces is that it will never suffice to go beyond capitalism if we merely replace private entrepreneurs or private employers with state officials. Nationalization or socialization of the means of production will not get us beyond capitalism in so far as it retains the employer versus employee dichotomy." Page 71

"Marx was a social critic for whom capitalism was not the end of human history. It was just the latest phase and badly needed the transition to something better." Page 73

"The proletarians have nothing to lose but their chains. They have a world to win. Working Men of All Countries, Unite!" Page 77 *Karl Marx