Routledge Handbook of Marxian Economics / Edition 1

by David M. Brennan, David Kristjanson-Gural, Catherine P. Mulder, Erik K. Olsen

Overview

Most developed economies are characterized by high levels of inequality and an inability to provide stability or opportunity for many of their citizens. Mainstream economics has proven to be of little assistance in addressing these systemic failures, and this has led both scholars and students to seek alternatives. One such alternative is provided by Marxian economics. In recent decades the field has seen tremendous theoretical development and Marxian perspectives have begun to appear in public discourse in unprecedented ways.

This handbook contains thirty-seven original essays from a wide range of leading international scholars, recognized for their expertise in different areas of Marxian economics. Its scope is broad, ranging from contributions on familiar Marxist concepts such as value theory, the labor process, accumulation, crisis and socialism, to others not always associated with the Marxian canon, like feminism, ecology, international migration and epistemology. This breadth of coverage reflects the development of Marxian economic and social theory, and encompasses both the history and the frontiers of current scholarship. This handbook provides an extensive statement of the current shape and future direction of Marxian economics.

The Routledge Handbook of Marxian Economics is an invaluable resource for students, researchers and policy makers seeking guidance in this field. It is designed to serve both as a reference work and as a supplementary text for classroom use, with applications for courses in economics, sociology, political science, management, anthropology, development studies, philosophy and history.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781138774933
Publisher:	Taylor & Francis
Publication date:	03/20/2017
Series:	Routledge International Handbooks
Pages:	456
Product dimensions:	6.88(w) x 9.69(h) x (d)

About the Author

David M. Brennan is Associate Professor of Economics at Franklin & Marshall College in Lancaster, PA, USA.

David Kristjanson-Gural is Professor of Economics and Senior Fellow of the Social Justice College at Bucknell University, PA, USA.

Catherine P. Mulder is Associate Professor of Economics and the Program Director at John Jay College—CUNY, USA.

Erik K. Olsen is Associate Professor of Economics at the University of Missouri—Kansas City and Research Fellow at the Rutgers University School of Management and Labor Relations, USA.

Table of Contents

Contents

List of Contributors

Preface

Acknowledgements

Part One: Dialectics and Methodology

1 Dialectics and Overdetermination

2 Epistemology

3 Marxian Class Analysis

Part Two: Analytical and Theoretical Topics

4 Exploitation

5 Labor and Labor Power

6 Abstract Labor

7 Money

8 Value and Price

9 Capital

10 The Circuits of Capital

11 Rent

12 Productive and Unproductive Labor

13 Alienation

14 Primitive Accumulation

15 Demand and Socially Necessary Labor-time

Part Three: Capitalist Production and Reproduction

16 The Capitalist Firm

17 Marxian Theories of the Labor Process: From Marx to Braverman

18 Marxian Labor Process Theory Since Braverman

19 Accumulation

20 Marxian Reproduction Schemes

21 Tendency of the Rate of Profit to Fall - long term dynamics

22 Business Cycles - short term dynamics

23 Neoliberalism

24 Financialization

Part Four: Capitalism, Non-Capitalism and Transitions

25 Productive Self-employment in Marxism

26 Socialism and Communism

27 International Migration

28 Agriculture and the Agrarian Question

29 Economic Development

30 Transition

Part Five: Marxian Traditions

31 Postmodernism

32 Analytical Marxism

33 Marxism and Keynesianism

34 Social Structure of Accumulation

35 Monopoly Capital Theory

36 Marxism, Feminism and the Household

37 Marxism and Ecology

Index

Editorial Reviews

"The fading from memory of the Soviet Union has allowed Marxism to be comprehended in increasing clarity these days, consigning to the dustbin of Cold War history many of the silly notions people held of it in those distorted times. Nor has interest in Marxism waned since those times either - if anything, especially since the Great Recession began in 2007, interest and concern with the themes and ideas of Marxism and especially Marxist economics has increased. It is time then for a review and updating of the great insights and theories of that tradition in light of recent history. This volume is a restatement of the main ideas of today’s Marxist economics as they have developed up to the present moment." — Eric A. Schutz, Professor Emeritus, Economics, Rollins College, Winter Park, Florida, USA

"As a scholar I found myself compelled by the deep, exhaustive treatments of Marxian concepts; the accounts are rich, well argued, and generally quite illuminating. As a teacher, I found some of the more introductory and definitional contributions of particular utility in teaching the foundations of Marxian theory...Generally speaking, however, the book is a useful contribution to the field of Marxian economics, many of its chapters warranting consistent re-reading. It is a book that I have already used in my work and one that I am likely to continue using for the foreseeable future." — Benjamin J Anderson, is a PhD Candidate in the School of Communication at Simon Fraser University (SFU), Marx & Philosophy Review of Books

From the Publisher