Re: [OPE-L] Marx's Form of Analysis

[Howard Engelskirchen <howarde@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

I don't get your objection to 'therefore' Hans.  Love may not be manifested
in a ring, but if it is causally efficacious it gets manifested.  As your
last sentence suggets without carrots/carats taking a price they can't be
sold.

howard


----- Original Message -----
From: "Hans G. Ehrbar" <ehrbar@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
To: <OPE-L@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Wednesday, February 16, 2005 11:51 AM
Subject: [OPE-L] Marx's Form of Analysis


> Howard, we both agree that value is unobservable and
> causally effective, just as many other social relations are
> at the same time unobservable and causally effective.
>
> Apologies for my obscure sentence with the words "per
> se" in it.  Let me try again.  You had written:
>
> > Notice that value is an unobservable -- it does not,
> > cannot appear.  Therefore it is manifested by means of
> > forms of appearance (exchange value, money).
>
> I disagree with the word "therefore" in this passage.  The
> fact that value is unobservable does, by itself, not yet
> create the necessity for it to take a form of appearance.
> Many social relations are very effective even if they do not
> have a form of appearance.  For instance, lovers do not need
> a wedding ring in order to know what to do with each other.
> It is different with value relations: they can only take
> effect if they have a form of appearance, because they are
> not direct relations between the producers but go through
> the market, i.e., through objects.
>
> Hans.
>