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Chapter 63 The Crystallization of Western Economic Theory
Chapter 62 The Crystallization of Western Economic Theory: "Principles of Political Economy"

In the 19th century of human society, the mixed economic theory system in Mill's "Political Economy" is a reflection of what had already been formed at that time.
It is a great synthesis of all kinds of economic theoretical knowledge, which includes not only what is often learned in classical politics, but also the knowledge of vulgar politics.
political economics, and also absorbed certain viewpoints of bourgeois reformism and utopian socialist thought.muller

The economic theory prevailed for quite a long time at that time, and had a great impact on the further evolution and development of bourgeois economics in the future.

considerable impact.

Introduce the old and bring forth the new book "Principles"

John Stuart Mill was a famous British philosopher, economist, and logician in the 19th century.

Born in London, moved to France at the age of 14 to study chemistry, botany and advanced mathematics,
And proficient in French; in 1821, he returned to China to study psychology and Roman law.Thereafter worked for the East India Company and engaged in academic activities
, has published monographs on logic and political economy.

From 1865 to 1868, she was elected as a member of the House of Commons in the Westminster District. In 1868, she became the first woman suffrage association in the world to create
One of the founders; died in Avignon in 1873.

In the 19th century, the British industrial revolution achieved great success, and the contradiction between the emerging industrial bourgeoisie and the landed aristocracy deepened day by day

; The economic theory system of Adam Smith's "The Wealth of Nations" has been considered incomplete, and many of its contents are outdated.for

Summarize the economic theories that drove the development of the political situation in the first half of the 19th century, and use the best social thinking of the time to prove that social

Economic phenomenon, Mill decided to write a "modern Wealth of Nations" adapted to the wider knowledge and new ideas of the time,
And made some supplementary and extended works to Ricardo's theory, namely "Principles of Political Economy--and Its Application in Social Philosophy"
Several Applications" (hereinafter referred to as "Principle"). Principia, one of Mill's major works on political economy, 1848
It was first published in London in 6 and has been reprinted [-] times since then.

Modern "The Wealth of Nations" Economics Collection

"Principles of Political Economy" consists of 5 parts, mainly discussing the influence of production, distribution, exchange, and social progress on production and distribution.

issues related to government influence. "Principles" first determined the scope of political economy research, and believed that political economy research
Its object is wealth, its nature, and the laws of its production and distribution.But at the same time, the author makes the social economic prosperity and decline

Reasons, including spiritual, psychological, and human nature factors, are also included in the scope of political economy research.Next, the "Principle" details
This is the central theme of the book and also the author's economic theory system.
The basics.

In the author's view, the law of production has the nature of a permanent law of nature, so he attributed all the production of all times to labor

the production of abstract factors such as labor, production tools and land; the real intention of analyzing the general conditions of production is to start from the general conditions of production

Starting out to demonstrate that production is not restricted by historical conditions, it is a matter of purely eternal natural laws, and then obliterates the capitalist
The essential difference between capitalist production and production in other historical stages, the capitalist production relations as a part of all social production
Treat it as the general law of nature, and deliberately serve as a cover for capitalist production.

Regarding the law of distribution, the "Principles" hold that it has a fundamentally different nature from the law of production, and is a law with a historical nature

.The author admits that the capitalist distribution relationship is a temporary historical relationship, which is a kind of progress.but he abandoned the labor process
historical form, only the relations of distribution are regarded as historical things, and the relations of production are not also regarded as historical things.

Severing the link between production and distribution, ignoring that the distribution relationship is determined by the ownership nature of the means of production, that is, recognizing
The distributive relationship is arbitrarily determined by people's will and feelings.

"Principles" believes that any social production must have three elements: labor, capital and the materials or power provided by nature

.

As for labor, the author believes that it is not only the expenditure of physical and mental energy, but also includes the subjective feelings caused by these expenditures.labor office
There are three kinds of utility in production: one is fixed and embodied in external objects, which is the labor of producing material products; the other is fixed
And embodied in the human body, this is all the labor of cultivating the physical and intellectual strength of oneself or others; the third is that it is neither fixed nor embodied in the human body.

In any object, this is the labor of motion that provides people with a certain amount of pleasure or avoids troubles and pains.But the author emphasizes that all

The labor that directly or indirectly produces material products is productive labor, and vice versa, it is unproductive labor.

The traditional view of productive and unproductive labor.

As for capital, "Principles" holds that capital is produced by previous labor and saved by accumulation to maintain productive labor

the material products of the country, but the author confuses capital with the material components that make it up, seeing capital as
The material product produced is regarded as a production relationship.

As for the materials and power provided by nature, the "Principles" hold that they are indispensable and necessary conditions for production, and it

What they include is not the product of labour, but the natural factor of production, the land, and thus the land that provides the resources of crops.
Land is the most important factor of production.

In addition, "Principles" also analyzed the law of the increase of various factors of production, and believed that the increase of production not only depends on the production of factors of production
Productivity, but also depends on the increase of factors of production.However, when the author analyzes this law, he takes the capital accumulation of Smith et al.
The law is combined with the law of diminishing land returns of Malthus et al. and the "law of population" that the population grows geometrically

Discussions are made to prove that the law of production is a permanent law of nature.

The investigation of capitalist distribution in "Principles" first analyzes wages.According to the author, wages are mainly determined by the needs of labor
Demand and supply, that is, depending on population and capital; price rises and falls usually affect wages by affecting the supply of labor, or
By affecting the increase or decrease of capital, it indirectly causes changes in the demand for labor and affects wages.The determination of the real wage level is mainly
Depends on the size of the population, on the number of laborers and the proportion of capital and other funds with which it is purchased, the author puts
The reason for low wages under capitalism is attributed to the overpopulation of the working class.

Next, "Principles" analyzes the nature of profit, its sources, occupational differences and equalization trends, and the determination of the rate of profit, etc.

problem.

Here, Mill believes that the wages of laborers are actually the rewards of labor, while the profits of capitalists are different.

The total profit can be divided into:

The rewards of forbearance—interest, the rewards of risk—the premiums of insurance and the rewards of management—supervisory wages.

Regarding the nature of profit, Mill adopted the above-mentioned views of vulgar economists on the one hand, and accepted Ricardo’s view on the other hand.

According to the viewpoint of classical economists, profit comes from labor, even from surplus labor.

When analyzing the source of profit and the equalization of profit, the author believes that the reason for profit lies in the productivity of labor and the
More product is produced than is consumed, because the laborer, after producing the product advanced by the capitalist in wages, sometimes
The time surplus works for the capitalist; denies the idea that profits are the result of buying and selling, dependent on prices.

Regarding the determination of the rate of profit, the author believes that the total profit of a country depends on the quantity of products, that is, the productivity of labor, and the
The proportion that the laborer receives in his produce, that is, the proportion of the laborer's remuneration to the amount produced.The profit margin depends only on the second
This factor is inversely proportional to the wages of workers.The efficiency of labor, the wages of labor (the real remuneration of laborers) and the real remuneration

The cost of production or acquisition of the goods included in the remuneration dominates the rate of profit, which changes depending on the
A minimum necessary rate of profit that induces people to save and convert it into capital, and this minimum rate of profit is taken as
It depends on people's foresight and the safety of investment.

The author decomposes the constant capital in the value of commodities into three types of income, so that his analysis of the rate of profit confuses profit with surplus.
Surplus value, rate of profit and rate of surplus value, mistakenly made the inverse ratio of profit and labor costs, profit rate is profit and wages
The conclusion of the ratio.

When "Principles" expounds the theory of value, it holds that the theory of value is not the subject of political economy, and that the production of wealth has nothing to do with value.
Questions of value are relevant only if distribution is determined by competition, and exchange remains the root of wealth distribution in a competitive society.

However, he also admitted that in the commodity society, the problem of value is still the "fundamental problem".

Regarding the value of commodities, the author distinguishes concepts such as use value, value, and price.

In explaining the value of commodities in terms of production costs, Mill accepts Ricardo's view that value depends primarily on labor expended and secondarily on
However, when analyzing the specific mechanisms that affect value such as wages and profits, the existence of absolute value is denied
, only regards value as the ratio of exchange between commodities, so general changes in wages, profits, etc. do not affect value.we can

It can be seen that Mill's theory of value is a compromise between the theory of production costs and the theory of supply and demand.

According to Mill, the law that production costs determine the value of commodities does not apply in international trade, and the value of commodities is mainly determined by supply and demand
This is an important supplement to Ricardo's comparative cost theory.

"Principles" believes that the progress of social economy is growth, which is mainly manifested in the increase of society's ability to control nature, and the growth of people and property.

increased security and free disposition of the human body, and increased ability to cooperate in various forms; economic growth depends on population growth,

Capital increase and technological progress.Social progress can increase the wealth of landlords, and the living standards of workers will increase, while profits will decrease.

In the author's view, the decline in profits will stagnate economic growth, which is a kind of fair distribution of wealth and controlled population growth.
An "ideal society" in which there is no system, labor is reduced, leisure time is increased, and individuals are free to develop.Muller argued that people's affairs should be

It is freely operated by people with vital interests, not restricted by laws and not interfered by government personnel.He therefore believes that economic growth
The general method and basic principle of the movement is laissez-faire, taking economic liberalism as the basic principle of the capitalist system and political economy.
creed; he favored the government's interference in social undertakings within the narrowest sphere, and could only interfere with those most relevant to the public interest
matters.

Mill's "Principles of Political Economy" prevailed for quite a long time, and it has a great impact on the further evolution and development of bourgeois economics in the future.

had a considerable impact.Mu
Le's economic theory system provides some ideological materials for the creation and development of Marxist political economy, such as Mark
In his criticism of Mill's view of profit, he expressed for the first time the transformation of surplus value into average profit and the value of commodities

into the basic idea of ​​the doctrine of the price of production which is different from it, etc.

(End of this chapter)