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A review by samue_l
Das Kapital: A Critique of Political Economy [Abridged] by Karl Marx
challenging
slow-paced
3.25
Facts.
So, I didn't enjoy reading this book. Marx is not eloquent and neither is the subject matter. But it is an extremely important work that is well worth the slog for anyone who cares about history or the working class, or the forces that dictate our lives under the capitalistic yoke of political economy. I do not think everyone should read this book, but I fully submit that its message should be spread through the minds of everyone who handles money.
The heart of capitalism is surplus value. It is infected with an STD called exploitation.
Here is an illustration of the main message of the book:
Surplus value is value in the form of money that is produced by labor after labor reproduces its own value. I.e., If I work in the factory for 40 hrs/wk, and my labor matches the value of my paycheck at the 15th hour, then 25 hours of my time and labor every week serves only to produce value for the capitalist who runs the factory. Because 25 hours of my time and labor serve the capitalist and only the capitalist—who runs the factory—rather than me or my community, and because I am forced either to work these 25 hours or starve, I am exploited. This principle of exploitation is intrinsic to and inseparable from capitalism. Exploitation is immoral. Thus, capitalism is immoral.
So, I didn't enjoy reading this book. Marx is not eloquent and neither is the subject matter. But it is an extremely important work that is well worth the slog for anyone who cares about history or the working class, or the forces that dictate our lives under the capitalistic yoke of political economy. I do not think everyone should read this book, but I fully submit that its message should be spread through the minds of everyone who handles money.
The heart of capitalism is surplus value. It is infected with an STD called exploitation.
Here is an illustration of the main message of the book:
Surplus value is value in the form of money that is produced by labor after labor reproduces its own value. I.e., If I work in the factory for 40 hrs/wk, and my labor matches the value of my paycheck at the 15th hour, then 25 hours of my time and labor every week serves only to produce value for the capitalist who runs the factory. Because 25 hours of my time and labor serve the capitalist and only the capitalist—who runs the factory—rather than me or my community, and because I am forced either to work these 25 hours or starve, I am exploited. This principle of exploitation is intrinsic to and inseparable from capitalism. Exploitation is immoral. Thus, capitalism is immoral.